The Native Americans In South Carolina

How did they get here? During the ice age, lots of the world’s water became frozen at the north and south pole. Therefore, the sea levels were much lower than they are today. This exposed more land on the edges of the continents, which caused Alaska and Siberia to be connected, in the “Bering Land Bridge”. The leading theory is that ancient people migrated across this land bridge, and then as the ice age ended, became trapped on the American continents.

Another theory… Another theory is that people from Europe traveled in boats across the Atlantic Ocean. The main premise for this theory is that the Clovis point, a major arrowhead design of ancient Native Americans, is much more similar to the arrowheads of ancient people from Spain and France then the arrowheads of northern Asia.

Native Americans in South Carolina I hope you already know that the three main Native American tribes in South Carolina are the Yemassee, Cherokee, and Catawba.

How they got food In the early days, they were hunters and gatherers. To hunt, they used sharp points made from bone and rocks. They also used bows and arrows. Sometimes, they used fire to chase away animals or to clear land for hunting or farming.

Farming Digging was done with a basic hoe made of bone. Their most important crop was probably corn. They grew pole beans, another staple crop, on corn stalks. They also cultivated squash, pumpkins, bottle gourds, and tobacco.

The Land Native American life was strongly affected by the geography of their region. For example, they used rivers for transportation. Waterways, plants and forests were plentiful. They made tools for farming, hunting, and building out of rocks, wood, and animal pelts. Rolling hills with fertile red-yellow clay soil allowed them to develop farming. They made their houses from the available resources like animal hides and tree bark.

The Europeans Arrive Initially the natives were friendly to the Europeans. In the early days the Native Americans helped them establish their settlements. The French and English began trading with them, especially for deerskins. The Spanish intermarried with them.

Relations Worsen The Europeans and Native Americans viewed property ownership and treaties differently. This caused them to disagree. Also, Native Americans were sold into slavery. This spawned some violent conflicts. Before a smallpox epidemic all but wiped them out, the Catawba helped to protect the settlers from hostile Native American tribes.

Yemassee War Because of problems with the Spanish, the Yemassee Indian tribe moved from their Florida home to South Carolina. At the beginning there was peace, but eventually they attacked settlers because they thought they were charging too much in business deals. The settlers defeated them with the help of the Cherokee. The few Yemassee that survived retreated back to Florida. This opened up more land for settlement. The colonists learned to expect little help from the British crown, nearby colonies, or even their own militias in fights with the natives. So temporarily, they treated the Native Americans a little better.

Cherokee War Gradually, settlers moved into South Carolina’s Upcountry. They built forts for protection. Prompted by French fur traders that also moved into the area, they sought a treaty with the Native Americans. The Cherokee interpreted it as an alliance while the British viewed it as an acknowledgement of their sovereignty.

Cherokee War After 30 years of peace, South Carolina’s governor attempted to control the Cherokee by halting all trade and then by taking captives. The Cherokee war began and lasted about two years. The Natives were shown no mercy by the regular British military. The result of the war was many deaths and a treaty that forced the Cherokee to give up a lot of their land. It also created a boundary between the colony and Cherokee territory.

Bibliography cfm#grade_8 Tribes of the Southern Woodlands by Virginia Alexandria, 1994 Time Life Books Nova America’s Stone Age Explorers Original PBS airdate: November 9, 2004 Visit