The Voice of the Longhouse: Delia Cook’s Storytelling Legacy

When the New York State Museum's Kanien’kehaka (Mohawk) Longhouse exhibit opened on October 3, 1992, NYSM staff member née Cooke, Toni Benedict (Oneida Nation), helped direct the educational programming. She also made pieces of replica historic beaded Haudenosaunee garments for the NYSM teaching collection that continue to be used to engage with our youngest visitors. 

In 1993, exhibition staff added an audio recording of a Clan Mother telling a story in the Longhouse exhibit, enriching the sensory experience of stepping inside a longhouse c. 1550. Toni Benedict and George Hamell recorded Karihwaienhne, Delia Cook, Turtle Clan Mother from Akwesasne, reading a story compiled from a collection by Mabel Powers. Cook’s recording allows visitors to understand the leadership roles and essential activities of Haudenosaunee women in everyday life within a longhouse and village. 

In 2007, Delia Cook won a First Peoples Community Spirit Award, a designation bestowed upon Indigenous artists who work within their communities to share their “cultural knowledge and ancestral gifts.” Delia Cook passed away in 2024. We continue to honor her memory and the enduring gift of her voice in our Longhouse exhibit.