Williams Township near Glendon in Northampton County, Pennsylvania — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Williams Township Totem Poles
Photographed by Alan Edelson, August 28, 2016
1. Williams Township Totem Poles Marker
Inscription.
The southeast coast of Alaska Indians, the Tlingit and Haida Groups, enjoyed a rich tradition of stories and myths passed down orally from one generation to the next which helped to create and develop totem poles. Totem poles were carved and erected for different purposes or occasions. None of them involved worship in any sense. Some were memorial poles erected to honor important individuals upon their deaths or to commemorate a particular event. Whatever the type of pole, the dramatic carving on the column served to remind the native viewers of events, people, and legends from their collective history. With no written language, this was a significant contribution to the continuation of the culture. Totem poles are "story poles" only in the sense that the figures carved on them acted as symbols or memory aids to remind the story teller of the principal characters and events he was relating. After seeing several totem poles on one of my first trips to the northwest, I thought it would be a novelty to have one at home in Williams Township. The only way I could do that was to make one. In 1971 I did just that. Carved from
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an oak tree, after some time it showed signs of deterioration so I decided to replace it with two new ones. This time I made them with some more lasting material - concrete. That's what you are looking at now.
James J. Rankin, 1998
Location. 40° 38.176′ N, 75° 13.554′ W. Marker is near Glendon, Pennsylvania, in Northampton County. It is in Williams Township. It is on Browns Drive, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Easton PA 18042, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Pennsylvania and in Lehigh Valley. It is also in the American Northeast and in the Mid-Atlantic. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy and also one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 28, 2016, by Alan Edelson of Union Twsp., New Jersey. This page has been viewed 834 times since then and 243 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on August 28, 2016, by Alan Edelson of Union Twsp., New Jersey. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
