Texas Indians

Western Gulf Culture

Karankawa Karankawa were hunters and gatherers who lived in the area of Galveston to Corpus Christi. They were nomads. They used dug-out canoes to fish, hunt sea turtles and collect shells. They also hunted deer and small animals. They lived in wigwams.

Karankawa The Karankawa did not need much clothing. Their clothes were made out of deerskin or grass. They painted themselves with bright colors. To keep the insects away they rubbed alligator fat and dirt into their skin..

Karankawa The Karankawa treated their children with kindness. They gave their children two names, one that was only known to the family.

Coahuiltecan The Coahuiltecan hunted and gathered food in south Texas. They were nomadic and covered large distances following buffalo, deer and small animals.

Coahuiltecans Coahuiltecans also fished and hunted for wild plants. Their diets included ants, eggs, lizards, snakes, spiders and worms.

Coahuiltecan They did not build permanent homes. Both men and women wore their hair long. They worked hard but also enjoyed feasting and dancing. Wikiup Hut

The Southeastern Culture Area

Caddo The Caddo moved into Eastern Texas from Arkansas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. They organized their tribes into three confederacies They built permanent villages and became expert farmers.

Caddo The Caddo grew beans, corn, squash, sunflower seeds and tobacco. When farming, they practiced crop rotation.

Caddo The Caddo was a matrilineal society. This means they traced their families through their mother’s side. Both men and women tattooed and painted their bodies.

Their houses were wooden poles covered with grass Their houses were wooden poles covered with grass. Some may have plastered the outside walls with mud.

Wichita The Wichita settled along the Red River. They grew beans, corn, melons and squash and used horses to hunt buffalo and deer. They lived in permanent villages. The Wichita tattooed their bodies, but theirs was more extreme than the Caddo.

Atakapa Along Gulf of Mexico lived the Atakapa Indians. The Atakapa Indians didn't do much farming. Instead, they made their livelihood as hunters and fishermen. Most of their diet was fish and seafood (including oysters, shrimp, and crabs.) Atakapa men also hunted big game like deer, buffalo, and alligators, and women gathered fruit, nuts, and wild honey.

Atakapa Atakapa people lived in brush shelters, which were small huts made of grass and reeds built around a simple wooden framework. These brush houses were not large or fancy, but they were easy to build and move from place to place, so they fit the Atakapa lifestyle

The Pueblo Culture Area

The Puebloan Jumanos The Jumano lived along the Rio Grande River. They are called Puebloan because the houses and buildings they lived in are called Pueblos. A Pueblo is like a big apartment building. Most have two or more stories. The walls are usually made from large mud bricks called adobe bricks. If the right kind of rock is available, many Pueblos would build rock walls. The rooms are small by our modern standards. A whole family would live in one room. All the people in a Pueblo are like one big family.

The Plains Culture Area The Great Plains stretches from Canada into Southern Texas. Many Native American groups lived along the edges of the Plains to farm and hunt buffalo. When the Spanish arrived, horses were introduced to the Indian tribes. Many Plains Indians became excellent horsemen. Most lived in tepees.

The Tonkawa The north-central plains and the southeastern edge of the Edwards Plateau was home to the Tonkawa. The buffalo was the source for food, clothing and shelter for these hunters-gatherers. The Tonkawa were driven from their hunting grounds by the Apache.

The Apache The Apache culture originated in Canada and migrated to the Great Plains. Two Apache groups, the Lipan and Mescalero, settled in Texas. Apaches were organized into bands that traveled, hunted and fought together. The Apaches were skilled horsemen and often teamed up when hunting buffalo. Lipan Apaches were also farmers which was very unusual for Apaches.

Apaches Most Apache men cut their hair very short on the left side but allowed the hair on the right to hang long. They tied feathers and other decorations to their hair. The men had no facial hair and the women wore earrings. Apaches were feared throughout Texas.

Comanche The Comanche originally lived in the western part of the United States. They eventually moved into the Great Plains once they acquired horses. The Comanche lived in bands headed by a peace chief. If you were the best fighter and rider you were the war chief. The Comanche were skilled buffalo hunters. Because of the their skills they soon controlled much of the plains including west and northern Texas.

Kiowa The Kiowa were the last plains group to arrive in Texas. They hunted buffalo, and gathered berries, fruits and nuts. They traded with other groups for what they did not have. The hair of the Kiowa men was long but over the right ear it was short. The Kiowa and the Comanche were allies.