The first inhabitants of Georgia Prehistoric Georgia The first inhabitants of Georgia

Prehistoric Native Americans Who were they? When did they arrive? Where was their original home? Why did they come? What did they eat? What kind of animals did they find here? Where did they live?

Vocabulary Terms Define: Archeologist Anthropologist Shale Artifact Culture Tribes Antiquities

Understanding through Artifacts Oral Tradition: Elders repeated the narrative of events often until younger generations had memorized them Archeologists dig into earth to find artifacts (items made by people) that tell us about early inhabitants Shale: layered rock that can encase animals or birds

Understanding through Culture Anthropologists use artifacts, cave drawings, well-traveled pathways, and oral history to study a group’s culture Culture: shared beliefs, traditions, music, art, and social institutions of a group of people

Who, When, and How did Native Americans Arrive? During the Ice Age Approximately 12,000 years ago Original Native Americans arrived on foot from Asia Used passage known as Beringia Served as “land bridge” Possibly as wide as 1,300 miles

Who, When, and How? Migration unplanned Nomads wandered looking for food as they traveled, others followed Climate warmer, more food Found woolly mammoths, mastodons, ground sloths, etc. All Native Americans descended from these Nomads

Who, When, and How? By 10,000 B.C. humans had arrived in what is now the Southeastern United States The following 11,700 years of history are divided into four traditions: Paleo Archaic Woodland Mississippian

Paleo-Indian Period Before 10,000 years ago “Paleo” means “very old” Also called Old Stone Age Mainly ate large animals such as mammoths, bison, mastodons, & ground sloths

Paleo-Indian Period Early Indians never stayed in one place for long – no evidence of fixed shelter Camped in the open Sometimes dug pits or built shelters to protect against weather Followed herds of large animals

Paleo Indians Nomadic (roaming) hunters Most tools and spear points made of stone

Archaic Period 8000 B.C. to 1000 B.C. Archaic means “old” Three time spans Early (8000 B.C.-5000 B.C.) Middle (began around 5000 B.C.) Late (4000 B.C.-1000 B.C.) Crude shelters; stayed in one place longer

Archaic Period

Archaic Hunted large animals and small game Invented tools from deer antlers Moved with each season to find best food resources Water levels moved back along rivers & coastal areas People began making hooks from animal bones Shellfish became a more common food Food became easier to find and there was less movement

Archaic Created grooved axes to clear trees and bushes Began saving and planting seeds for planting (horticulture) Made and used pottery for cooking and storing food

Woodland Period 1000 B.C. to A.D. 1000 Tribe: group of people sharing common ancestry, name, and way of living Hundreds of families formed tribes Built domed-shaped huts with trees Used bow and arrows to hunt Held religious ceremonies

Woodland Period Improved pottery making techniques Ate small game, fish, nuts, and berries Also planted crops such as squash & sunflowers

Mississippian Period 700 A.D. to 1600 A.D. Also called the Temple Mound Period Farmed with homemade tools and grew most of their own food Crops (maize, beans, pumpkins, squash) Thousands lived in single settlement, protected by fences and moats Very religious; used jewelry and body art

Mississippian Period Ancient middens (garbage piles) show what people ate, how they used fire, what they used for cooking Ocmulgee National Monument near Macon reveals a large ceremonial area with benches and platforms Similar tools as Woodland period: stone hoes, copper headdresses

Mississippian Period Kolomoki Mounds Rock Eagle Mounds Blakely County Near Social Circle

Native Americans in Georgia Who were they? Creeks (Muscogee) Cherokee

The Creek Indians Originally from American southwest Spoke Muskogean Discovered by European Explorers who called them Creeks Lived along Ocheese Creek (today’s Ocmulgee River) Lived in italwa and talofa (large villages surrounded by smaller villages (similar to cities & suburbs today)

Creek Lifestyle Village center featured plaza & rotunda Games & ceremonies held in plaza Rotunda used for council meetings Wooden huts or log cabins with chimneys surrounded the plaza Villages, split from larger villages, helped form a confederacy Raised livestock; were successful farmers

The Cherokee Lived in northwestern mountain region of the state Called themselves the Awi-yum-wija, which meant the “real people” or “principal people” Tribal clans: groups of people who believed themselves to be related by Cherokee blood Two tribal chiefs: one for making wartime decisions, and one for making peace time decisions Clans governed on the local level

The Cherokee Family Family lines were traced through the mother The mother’s brothers were responsible for raising the children Mothers handled most of the domestic chores, fathers often left home to hunt or trade Children played games that prepared them for adulthood

Cherokee Lifestyle Built homes on high banks or hills along rivers and streams Shelters were built from available materials, often plastered on the exterior to keep out rain & cold Log cabins built for winter living Fishing and raising crops including maize (corn) Barter: trading goods and services without exchange of money was economic system

Cherokee Homes

Cherokee Religion Believed earth was a large island resting on water This World: Tribe was at center of earth Upper World: Clean & pure world; Sun & Moon were chief gods Under World: waters below this world; disorder & change Deer and birds were honored, bears were not

Other Cherokee Practices Drank ginseng to stop bleeding or shortness of breath Smoked tobacco during ceremonial occasions when seeking gods’ blessings Green Corn Ceremony held to give thanks for corn, their most important source of food Followed “Law of Retaliation”-took revenge to get even This law prevented feuds within the tribes