The First Americans
The existence of Native Americans in North America is a well documented fact long before Europeans ever arrived on the shores. In fact, the European entrance into North America was just 600 years ago while the history of Native North Americans dates back thousands of years. Because of these facts, the history of North Carolina is largely, a history of the Native Americans. Archaeologists categorize the history of these Natives in periods. They argue over the first mention of Cherokee in the region that is now North Carolina, but it is generally agreed that artifacts have been found that date back to around 1100 A.D. This time period is categorized in the Mississippian Period and it ran from 1100 A.D. through 1550 A.D. This is the era when contact with Europeans was first established. This period is categorized by less movement than previous peoples and a realization of more permanent settlements by Native Americans. A lot of this is believed to be due to climate changes after the end of the ice age and a continual warming trend in the continent of North America. Instead of being largely nomadic and following their food source, these groups of people started making more permanent settlements primarily around rivers so they had access to water and fertile lands for growing alternative food sources. Agriculture among the natives was becoming increasingly important even though some wild foods were still gathered and wild animals were hunted for their meat, skins and bones. Plants that were cultivated by these early Americans included squash or gourds, corn, beans (called "The Three Sisters") and tobacco. These crops were traded along trade routes with other villages and tribes from the mountains of what is now North Carolina to the coast and even down into what is now Georgia and North to the Ohio River Valley. They traded their agricultural goods for shells and copper. The women began to make pottery from clays found in rivers and streams in which to store excess crops for the winter months. Men hunted with bows and arrows. As time passed, these societies began to get more complex and by the 1200s, there were more organized societies with spiritual ceremonies, political leaders, a vigorous trade and individualized craftsmen. The societies in the western part of what is now North Carolina built earthen mounds to honor their spiritual and political leaders. Some of these mounds can still be seen today in parts of North Carolina like Town Creek in Montgomery County as well as in the western mountains of North Carolina.
Pre-historic Native Americans
Pisgah village at Warren Wilson
The predecessors to what we today call the Cherokee lived during the Mississippian period (1100-1550 a.d.) and were called the Pisgah and the Qualla cultures. Archaeologists base these names on artifacts they have found at key sites which have been dated and linked together. The artifacts are representative of the cultures that lived at these sites in the Western mountains of North Carolina during the Mississippian time period. One Pisgah culture was located at what is now Warren Wilson College along the Swannanoa River. There was another Pisgah site near Canton, North Carolina. Both sites were organized villages and had similar structures and features. Buildings built on mounds were common. Archaeologists have learned that they used wooden buildings for ceremonies and funerals and periodically tore them down and built new buildings on top of the old ones, thus making the mounds higher and bigger each time this was done. Not every Pisgah village had the large mounds, however. Historians and archaeologists believe that the villages where the large mounds were found were larger in size and were probably religious or political focal points with smaller villages around them.
At the Warren Wilson site, the Pisgah Village covered about 3 acres and is considered a mid-sized settlement. The houses were close together and formed a circle around a central, open plaza. The houses were rectangular and about 20 feet on the sides. The inhabitants used wooden poles along the sides and in the corners and then weaved vines and branches between them. It is believed that they then used grasses and clay to finish sealing the walls to make them more protective against the outdoors. Some of the dwellings had room partitions and others were just open inside. They all had strong beams inside to support the roof which was made of bark, branches and thatch. A hearth with a clay collar was in the middle of most of the houses for cooking and heat.
At the Warren Wilson site, the Pisgah Village covered about 3 acres and is considered a mid-sized settlement. The houses were close together and formed a circle around a central, open plaza. The houses were rectangular and about 20 feet on the sides. The inhabitants used wooden poles along the sides and in the corners and then weaved vines and branches between them. It is believed that they then used grasses and clay to finish sealing the walls to make them more protective against the outdoors. Some of the dwellings had room partitions and others were just open inside. They all had strong beams inside to support the roof which was made of bark, branches and thatch. A hearth with a clay collar was in the middle of most of the houses for cooking and heat.
Aside from these dwellings, archaeologists have also found remnants of other types of buildings. These are believed to be possible granaries for food storage or sweat lodges for use during spiritual ceremonies. There is also evidence of community celebrations because large, shallow roasting pits have been found along the village edges filled with food remains and bones.
Another interesting finding in the villages of the Pisgah was the stockade that surrounded their villages. It is believed that the stockades were erected to protect the villages from intruders who may have tried to pilfer the houses and granaries while the villagers were out on hunts. There is evidence of these stockade walls being expanded, presumably as the population grew. There is also evidence of a central area in the village that was surrounded by a stockade. This is believed to be a sacred area where religious or political ceremonies took place and probably where the "eternal fire" was kept burning at all times.
Burials among the Pisgah at Warren Wilson show that theirs may not have been an egalitarian society. Some graves were inside homes and some were just outside the doors. Some had offerings or special items in them while others did not. This hints that there may have been some ceremonial customs and that some family members may have been political or spiritual leaders. Evidence of the ceremonial aspect in Pisgah culture is seen more prominently at the Garden Creek settlement.
Another interesting finding in the villages of the Pisgah was the stockade that surrounded their villages. It is believed that the stockades were erected to protect the villages from intruders who may have tried to pilfer the houses and granaries while the villagers were out on hunts. There is evidence of these stockade walls being expanded, presumably as the population grew. There is also evidence of a central area in the village that was surrounded by a stockade. This is believed to be a sacred area where religious or political ceremonies took place and probably where the "eternal fire" was kept burning at all times.
Burials among the Pisgah at Warren Wilson show that theirs may not have been an egalitarian society. Some graves were inside homes and some were just outside the doors. Some had offerings or special items in them while others did not. This hints that there may have been some ceremonial customs and that some family members may have been political or spiritual leaders. Evidence of the ceremonial aspect in Pisgah culture is seen more prominently at the Garden Creek settlement.
Garden Creek Settlement
The Garden Creek settlement was also a village but was larger than the settlement at Warren Wilson. It also had evidence of ceremonial customs. There was a very large mound at Garden Creek with 24 bodies buried at one end - all had sacrificial offerings with them. There were other mounds with evidence of buildings on them that were quite similar to native settlements in other parts of North Carolina. Archaeologists don't think that these cultures had contact with one another but cannot be positive. They also believe that the mound-building sequence in some places went hand in hand with changing social and political life. One idea is that the earliest earth lodges served as council houses for egalitarian societies. Representatives met in them to make decisions based on consensus. But the subsequent building of mounds coincided, at least in the Mountains, with transitions to more centralized societies. There, the flat platforms served to elevate the homes of chiefs or priests. Inheriting both rights and power, the chiefs and their families were buried in the mounds. Most archaeologists think the mounds were very visible expressions of a stratified or ranked political system ruled by a hereditary aristocracy.
Qualla Culture
Examples of Qualla pottery
Around 1400 a.d., archaeologists noted a shift in the style of the pottery they found in native ruins. The pottery designs changed and new styles were created including decorative bowls. This shift in pottery signals a new culture called the Qualla. Other than being a bit more egalitarian than the Pisgah culture, the Qualla were very similar. These early ancestors of the Cherokee survived on diets of vegetables that they grew in the rich mountain soils along the river. They grew vegetables such as beans, squash, and marsh elder but their principle crop was maize or corn. They also relied on food and skins from wild animals they hunted such as the white tailed deer, bear, turtles, fish and frogs. The remainder of their food came from wild plants, fruits and berries that they gathered throughout the seasons including acorns, hickory nuts, walnuts and butternuts. The Qualla culture was the culture that existed at the time of European contact.
History is Established
1590 engraving by DeBry entitled Native American Ritual
By the time of European contact with the interior Natives in the early 16th century, the Native Americans had been living in North America for around 10,000 years. They had established very well-functioning societies based around agriculture and had established regular trade routes between other native tribes. A history of the Native Americans was established from the time of European contact and is well documented by drawings and detailed notes from various people who dared to explore the interior of what is now our great state of North Carolina. One of the first to transverse the western-most mountains of our state was Hernando de Soto in 1540. He came looking for gold for Spain. There was virtually no European contact again until 17th century. As trade grew and colonization expanded, Cherokee Natives began to have more encounters with the white man.
Europeans came to the Americas in search of wealth and land ownership. The natives living here in North America, however, did not believe that land could be owned. They believed that they were caretakers of the land and they depended on it and respected it and all the creatures who lived here. The arrival of Europeans signaled the beginning of ongoing encounters and exchanges between two cultures that were very diverse and very culturally different. As more Europeans came to the Americas to establish permanent settlements, conflicts over land ownership became increasingly more hostile. Eventually, most Native Americans were forced to give up their way of life and their homelands and were forcibly moved to reservations out west.
These two cultures also exchanged a few things that brought positive change. New farming techniques and animals, including the horse were shared. Trade grew as the Cherokee were able to swap their furs, fish, baskets, vegetables and pottery for goods such as iron, axes, knives, pots and guns. Their arrival also brought a more deadly consequence, however - disease. To the Natives who had no immunity or resistance to European illnesses such as small pox, influenza, measles or chicken pox, the consequences were devastating. In some instances, entire villages were decimated by disease. Some experts estimate that nearly 90% of Native Americans were wiped out because of the diseases that Europeans brought.
Throughout this website, we will attempt to explore the history and culture of the Cherokee natives that resided in North Carolina. We will look at their culture and present information on their land, language, legends, legacy and loss.
Europeans came to the Americas in search of wealth and land ownership. The natives living here in North America, however, did not believe that land could be owned. They believed that they were caretakers of the land and they depended on it and respected it and all the creatures who lived here. The arrival of Europeans signaled the beginning of ongoing encounters and exchanges between two cultures that were very diverse and very culturally different. As more Europeans came to the Americas to establish permanent settlements, conflicts over land ownership became increasingly more hostile. Eventually, most Native Americans were forced to give up their way of life and their homelands and were forcibly moved to reservations out west.
These two cultures also exchanged a few things that brought positive change. New farming techniques and animals, including the horse were shared. Trade grew as the Cherokee were able to swap their furs, fish, baskets, vegetables and pottery for goods such as iron, axes, knives, pots and guns. Their arrival also brought a more deadly consequence, however - disease. To the Natives who had no immunity or resistance to European illnesses such as small pox, influenza, measles or chicken pox, the consequences were devastating. In some instances, entire villages were decimated by disease. Some experts estimate that nearly 90% of Native Americans were wiped out because of the diseases that Europeans brought.
Throughout this website, we will attempt to explore the history and culture of the Cherokee natives that resided in North Carolina. We will look at their culture and present information on their land, language, legends, legacy and loss.