1. Eastern Woodland Indians
The Seminoles
Eastern Woodland Indians

2. How did Seminole Indian children live, and what did they do?
Seminole children had chores and not much time to play, but they did have palmetto dolls and wooden toys. Like many Native Americans, Seminole mothers traditionally carried their babies in cradleboards on their backs.
palmetto dolls

3. What were men and women's roles in the Seminole tribe?
Seminole men were hunters and sometimes went to war to protect their families. Seminole women were farmers and also did most of the child care and cooking. Both men and women took part in storytelling, artwork and music, and traditional medicine.

4. What were Seminole homes like in the past?
The Seminole people lived in houses called chickees. Seminole chickees were made of wood and plaster, and the roofs were thatched with palmetto fiber. Here are some pictures of chickees like the ones Seminole Indians used. Originally, the Seminoles lived in large villages of chickees arranged around a town square with central buildings in it, like a meeting hall and a sports field. But as the Seminoles moved south, they began living in smaller groups in remote areas of the Everglades. They also began building their houses on wooden stilts that raised the floor two or three feet off the ground. This protected their homes from flooding and swamp animals.

5. Chickees-from start to finish!

6. What was Seminole clothing like
What was Seminole clothing like? Did they wear feather headdresses and face paint?
Seminole men wore breechcloths. Seminole women wore wraparound skirts, usually woven from palmetto. Shirts were not necessary in Seminole culture, but men and women both wore poncho-style covers in cool weather. The Seminoles also wore moccasins on their feet.

7. breechcloth
moccasins
The Seminoles didn't wear long headdresses. Seminole men usually shaved their heads except for a single scalp lock. Originally, Seminole women wore their long hair in buns. The Seminoles wore elaborate tribal tattoos, but rarely painted their faces. Today, some Seminole people still wear moccasins or a patchwork skirt, but they wear modern clothes like jeans instead of breechcloths. The Seminoles didn't wear long headdresses. Seminole men usually shaved their heads except for a single scalp lock. Originally, Seminole women wore their long hair in buns. The Seminoles wore elaborate tribal tattoos, but rarely painted their faces. Today, some Seminole people still wear moccasins or a patchwork skirt, but they wear modern clothes like jeans instead of breechcloths.

8. What was Seminole transportation like in the days before cars
What was Seminole transportation like in the days before cars? Did they paddle canoes?
Yes--the Seminole Indians made flat dugout canoes from hollowed-out cypress logs. They steered these boats with poles rather than paddles, and sometimes used sails made from palmetto fiber. Over land, the Seminoles used dogs as pack animals. (There were no horses in North America until colonists brought them over from Europe.)

9. What was Seminole food like in the days before supermarkets?
The Seminoles were farming people. Seminole women harvested crops of corn, beans, squash, and peanuts. They also ate many fruits including bananas, orange, pineapples, and coconuts. Seminole men did most of the hunting and fishing, catching game such as deer, wild turkeys, rabbits, turtles, and alligators.
Growing corn, beans, and squash together was known as “the three sisters” grouping. Beans grew up the cornstalk, while the squash covered the ground and kept it moist.

10. What were Seminole weapons and tools like in the past?
Seminole hunters used bows and arrows. Fishermen usually used fishing spears.

11. What are Seminole arts and crafts like?
The Seminoles are known for their tattoos and beadwork.
Each year a woman was given a string of beads on her birthday. One new string was added each year until the woman turned 40 years old. The necklaces covered the woman’s neck up to her ears and chin. When the woman turned 40, she began to lay one strand of beads aside year by year until only one strand was left. The Seminole women never went into public without the necklaces.