1. Seminole Indians

2. Where do the Seminole Live?
The Seminole lived in the southeast region, specifically in the state of Florida.
They started out in northern Florida, but when the Americans attacked them, the Seminole tribe retreated further south, into the Everglades.

3. Who are the Seminole Indians
The Seminole people were once part of the Creek Tribe
When European settlers arrived, some of the creek people decided to stay behind, while others moved to northern and central Florida
These people became known as the Seminole (which means “runaway” or “Wander”

4. What did they eat?
Planted: corn, beans, squash (Three Sisters) and other vegetables and fruit. Each family owned a vegetable garden.
Corn was an important staple in the Seminole diet. It was often used to make a corn dish called hominy or it was ground into meal to make cornbread
Fished/Hunted in Water: alligators
Hunted: deer, bear, raccoon, squirrel, and birds
Gathered: roots and potatoes

5. What did they wear?
They wore colorful cotton clothing decorated with striped or plaid designs. Some made with PLANT fibers.
The women wore long-sleeved blouses and skirts that touched the floor
Wore necklaces made of glass beads. It was common for Seminole women to wear several pounds of beaded necklaces that reached all the way to her ears!
Men wore colorful shirts and plaid turbans on their heads
When the weather was cold, men wore coats with ruffles called long shirts

7. What about their shelters?
The Seminole living near the Everglades built open-sided wooden huts called chickees
A chickee was built on a platform raised about 3 feet off the swampy ground, and it had a thatched roof constructed of palmetto leaves
The roof kept out rain
The Seminole slept in hammocks
The Seminole spent most of their time outdoors
Why should it be raised?????

8. Chickee

9. How did the Seminoles travel?
They made flat dugout canoes from hollowed-out cypress logs
They steered the boats with poles rather than paddles

10. What were the Seminole villages like?
Was made up of many families
Families in the villages were related through their mothers
All women and children belonged to the same clan
Seminole women worked near camp, taking care of the children, cooking, sewing, and gardening
Seminole men hunted, fishing, and farming
In the early summer, the Seminole prepared for an important festival- the green corn dance
Seminole villages came together to celebrate the festival by dancing, playing games, and feasting
The naming ceremony was held that year at the green corn dance festival