Early Indians

Prehistoric Peoples of Illinois

Little Information• Two reasons for little information

about the earliest Indians

– 1. Archeology is mainly focused around the Mediterranean Sea shoreline.

Little Information Cont’d.• 2. Most archeologists

are only interested in discovery. They are not concerned w/. sharing what they find.

– Kincaid Mounds dig resumes this summer Koster: Americans in

Search of their Prehistoric PastWaveland Press (2000)

Some Basic Historical Information

• What does B.C. stand for?

• What does A.D. stand for?

Some Basic Historical Information Cont’d.

• B.C. stands for …

– BEFORE CHRIST

• A.D. stands for …

– No, it isn’t After Death

– ANNO DOMINI which stands for…

• In the year of our Lord-

Why Not After Death?

• If A.D. meant After Death, there would be 33 years unaccounted in the calendar.-

The Earliest People in Illinois

• Signs of people in Illinois date back to around 12,000 year ago.

– 10,000 B.C.-

Paleo-Indian Period• Small Population

• Mainly hunters who followed the game

– Elk

Paleo-Indian Period

• Lived near rivers during the summer

– Fish & mussels

• During the Fall they would move to higher ground in the forests.

– Gathering nuts-

Archaic Period

• 10,000 years ago

• Lasted from 8,000 B.C. to 500 B.C.

• The Koster Site provides the best evidence of this period.

• People lived in communities for several generations.-

Two Phases of the Woodland Period

• The Early Woodland Phase

• The Late Woodland Phase

– Divided by the Hopewellian Period-

The Woodland Period

• 500 B.C.

• The first signs of pottery

– The first pottery was called Marion Thick

The Woodland Period

• The people who were around during this time were called the Black Sands people.

– These people mainly lived around the Mississippi & Illinois River plain.-

The Hopewellian Period• Around 200 B.C.

• Hopewell Indians buried artifacts w/. their dead leaders.

• They were advanced in their trading.

– Goods from all over the U.S. were found among their artifacts.

• Hunters, gatherers, & fishermen

• Not much on growing crops-

The Late Woodland Period

• A.D. 400 to A.D. 1,000

• Smaller population & less trade w/. outside groups-

The Mississippian Period

• A.D. 900 to A.D. 1,400

• The largest town established during this time period was located at Cahokia.

– Noted for the large mound formations.

– Best known as Cahokia Mounds-

Reading 2

Prehistory of Illinois

The First People Arrive• The first people to live in the Americas

came here from Asia.– They crossed over on the frozen

Bering Straits.• The first to arrive were the Paleo-

Indians.– No Paleo-Indian villages have ever

been excavated in Illinois.• Their artifacts have been found.-

The Archaic Indians

• Hunted & farmed

• Stayed together in one area for generations-

Woodland Period

• Pottery

• Followed by:

– Hopewell

– Middle & Late Woodland-

Mississippian Period• Building of mounds• The largest mound is Monks Mound

located at Cahokia.– Larger than 14 1/2 football fields – 100 feet high

• The Mississippian Culture ended before the Europeans arrived in Illinois.-

The Illiniwek

• The Illini Indians had early dealings with the European traders.

– Mainly w/. the French

• The Illinois Indians were in the Middle Mississippi River Valley to do their trading.

The Illiniwek

• Their villages were located in the Northeast

• They contracted diseases from their European trading partners.-

Readings 3 & 4

Prehistoric Indians: The Mound Builders & The Koster Site

The Koster Site

• Located south Kampsville, Illinois

– Near the Illinois River in Calhoun County

• One of the largest prehistoric villages ever found

– Covers around 25 acres-

Carbon 14 Dating • All living things contain carbon at a

certain rate.

• After they die they start to lose carbon.

• The rate of loss is able to be measured.

• The measure is accurate up to around 50,000 years.-

The Dig at Koster

• A dig is the name of an archeological excavation.

• The different layers in the earth are called horizons.

• Koster is the richest archeological site in North America.

• The population was around 10,000.-

Audrey-North

• Audrey-North is another archeological site that is near the Koster Site.-

The Horizons at Koster

• There are 14 known horizons at Koster.

• Koster was occupied on & off, for around 7,000 years.– The theory is that a lack of

firewood is the reason they left.

The Horizons at Koster

• Horizon number 2 dates back to 300 B.C.

• Hzn. 12 is 34 feet below the ground

• Hzn. 13 & 14 are below the water table-

The Modoc Rock Shelter

• Located near the Mississippi River in Randolph County.

– Occupied around 11,000 years ago-

The Hopewell Indians• They were first discovered by a

farmer in Ohio.– M. C. Hopewell

• The Hopewell Indians originally developed in Illinois & spread into other areas.

Ross County

The Hopewell Indians

• They utilized Effigy Mounds

– Made to look like animals

– Actually tombs for hundreds of people-

Reading 5

A Pre-Columbian Urban Center on the Mississippi

Cahokia Mounds

• Located just east of St. Louis

• There are 120 mounds located at the Cahokia site.-

Monk’s Mound

• The largest of the mounds at Cahokia.

– Measures 700 x 1,000 x 100 covering 15 acres

– Contains 4 levels-

Patrick Phase

• The earliest part of the Cahokia settlement started around A.D. 600 to A.D. 800.

– Pottery found but no evidence of mound building-

The Occupation Phase

• Around A.D. 900 signs of mound building start to appear.

– There are also signs of fancy burials during this time period.-

Borrow Pits• Dirt would be dug up using various

tools, and placed in baskets.

• The baskets full of dirt would then be taken to build up the mounds.

• There are 9 known borrow pits around Cahokia.

• The largest is 17 acres & 6 feet deep

• The pits also served as trash dumps.-

Burial Mounds

• There are possible signs of human sacrifice at the burial mounds.

– Mainly women

• The leaders were buried with many valuable artifacts.-

Fairmount Phase

• The first Woodhenge was built during the Fairmount Phase.

• The purpose of the Woodhenge was to mark the various seasons.

• The Woodhenge was built a total of five times.-

The Moorehead Phase

• Moorehead was the last phase in which the Woodhenge was rebuilt.

• Cahokia reached its peak during the Moorehead Phase.

• Homes were made out of poles & thatch.-

Basic Facts on Cahokia• Named a World Heritage Site by the

United Nations in 1982.

• 65 of the 120 mounds are within the boundaries of the historical site.

• 50 million cubic feet of earth was moved to create the various mounds.

• 22 million cubic feet of earth was moved to create Monks Mound-

Facts on Cahokia• The construction of Monks Mound

took around 300 years to complete.

• The stockade around Monks Mound was two miles long.

• Guard towers were placed every 80 feet.

• Mound 72 was filled with around 300 bodies that were ceremonially killed-

No-Name Phase

• The final phase at Cahokia is called the No-Name Phase.

– A.D. 1500 to 1700

• This was around the time when the Europeans were reaching Illinois.

• Why did they fade away?

– No one really knows!-

http://users.stlcc.edu/mfuller/cahokia/MonksReconstructed.JPG

Reading 4 & 5 Test

Reading 6

The Mississippian Culture

CORN

• Corn was extremely important to the Mississippian culture.

• Indians used corn back in 800 B.C.

• But it was not used as a crop until A.D. 800.

• This was one of the largest & most populous.-

Reading 7

The Illiniwek: Superior Men

The Illini Indians

• Made up of the following: Kaskaskias, Tamaroas, Cahokias, Peorias, Michigameas, & the Moingwenas.

• Controlled the land between the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers.-

Illiniwek

• The French called them Illinois or Illini for short.

• Their houses were called long homes, made for several families to occupy.-

The Peace Pipe

• The peace pipe as we call it was actually called a calumet.

• They usually smoked tobacco blended with other herbs.-

Warfare

• The Illini Indians were seen as a warring tribe.

• Their main enemies were the Sioux in the West, and the Iroquois in the East.-

The Iroquois Invasion

• The Iroquois invaded Illinois and eventually were able to drive many of the Illini out of IL.-

The Iroquois Invasion

Reading # 8

Fall 1680

• In September, Iroquois were discovered in Illini territory.

• Many of the Illini braves were off fighting with the Sioux.

– Less than 500 braves were left in the camp.

Tonti

• Tonti was a French explorer who worked with Robert LaSalle.

• Tonti was staying w/. the Illini when the Iroquois attacked

– Stabbed but able to buy time for the Illini

• Tonti was eventually found by LaSalle in November on 1680.

Mmm, Mmm, Good!

• The Iroquois captured many of the Illini and tortured and ate them.

• Eating the heart would increase ones bravery.

The Kickapoo Story

Reading # 9

Story # 1

• The Kickapoo signed a treaty in Edwardsville, IL. that gave away 10 million acres for $30,000.

– $2,000 in silver a year for 15 years.

The Kickapoo

• Their name means he who moves about.

• In 1763, the Kickapoo, joined Pontiac against the British.

Pontiac, an Ottawa Indian

• Pontiac had sided w/. the French during the French and Indian War.

• The French lost in 1763 but Pontiac was not finished fighting.

• Pontiac kept the British out of IL. for two years.

– July of 1765, the British were able to broker peace w/. Pontiac.

Pontiac

Assassination

• In 1769, Pontiac was assassinated by an Illini warrior.

Readings 1-9 Overview

Test Preparation

Readings 10 - 15

The Miami Indians

• Started in the Green Bay area & spread to northern IL, MI, & IN.

• Wore little in the summer & furs in the winter

• Tattoos & worshipped the sun & thunder

• Traveled mainly by land & very little by water

Black Partridge

• One of the most peaceful Indians in IL

• Eventually his young braves attacked some early settlers.

Black Hawk

• Pushed out of IL, but later returned causing fear among the settlers.

• Started the Black Hawk War

Shabbona

• Known as the white man’s friend

• Friends w/. both settlers & Indians

• Refused to help Black Hawk after the war started

• Rock for a chair

Tecumseh

• Known as Shooting Star

Ely S. Parker

• General U. S. Grant’s military secretary