Unit 2: The 1st People of North America

• SS8H1: The student will evaluate the development of Native American culture and the impact of European exploration and settlement on the Native American cultures in Georgia.

a. Describe the evolution of Native American cultures prior to European contact.

• SS8E1: Examples of goods & services produced during different historical periods.

Unit 2

• Use the textbook glossary to define the following words. Anthropologist Archaeologist

Artifacts Civilization

Culture Paleo-Indians

Woodland Indians

Prehistoric Archaic Indians

Indian Periods

Dates Tools & Weapons

Food Dwellings(Homes)

Evidence of Religion

Other Info

Paleo

Archaic

Woodland

Mississippian

GEORGIA’s PREHISTORIC INDIANS

Paleo Archaic

8000 BC to 1000 BC

PermanenthomesCrops

Woodland

1000 BC to 1000 AD

HutsGrass roofs

Mounds

Mississippian

700 AD to 1600 AD

Large villages

Ceremonial Buildings

Before 10,000 BC

Nomads (no home) Groups

25-50 people

Prehistoric Period SS8H1a

• Ancient people came from Asia to the Americas.

• Over time, they developed complex civilizations.

Beringia: A bridge of land that existed 12,000+ years ago.

Paleo-Indian Period

• Also known as the Paleolithic Period, this is the earliest known timeframe for inhabitants living in North America.

• Before 10,000 B.C.• Occurred when the glaciers or the Ice Age

started melting.

Paleo-Indian Period

• Paleo-Indians hunted large game, gathered plant foods, and fished.

• Extinction of large game animals ended the Paleo-Indian way of life.

• They used “Clovis” point spears (sharpen stone point attached to a wooden stick).

• Paleo-Indians were nomads(no permanent homes)

Writing Prompt ELACC6-8

• What do you think archaeologists and anthropologists of future centuries will think about today’s eighth graders, their schools, their technology, and their homes?

• What artifacts do you think might be used as evidence to describe your society?

• Respond in a paragraph • (minimum 5 sentences)

Archaic Indian Period

• Around 8,000 B.C. to 1,000 B.C.• Earth’s climate became warmer. • Scientists believed the Archaic Indians were the

1st culture of Georgia.• Created better techniques for fishing, gathering,

& hunting• Used a varied shaped small spear points.• Used the atlatl spears and axes made from stone

to hunt small animals, plus chop down trees.

Archaic Indian Period

• They became permanent settlers, who established villages.

• The Native Americans of this period began to grow crops.

• They lived under circular rock shelters (pit houses) made of clay and logs. The pit houses had rooms that were either partially or entirely underground.

Archaic Indian Period

• Artifacts suggest that they carved bowls out of stone, which they traded with other Native Americans in different regions for tools and utensils.

Woodland Indian Period• 1,000 B.C. to 800 A.D.• Developed agriculture: cleared fields, planted,

& harvested crops (squash, beans, & maize)• They produced enough food to store for

winter & early spring months.• Indians began to live in larger groups called

tribes or clans.

Woodland Indian Period• They developed:A. bows and arrows for huntingB. well-developed pottery with

patterns & designs• They built:A. Villages with storage

facilities that were protected by surrounding walls

B. Burial mounds containing bones, jewelry, and pottery

3-2-1 Response

• What were 3 kinds of crops that the Woodland Indians planted and harvested?

• Which 2 prehistoric cultures became permanent settlers?

• Which period (1) developed the bow & arrow to hunt more effectively?

Mississippian Indian Period SS8E1• 700 A.D. to 1600 A.D.• Began along the Mississippi

& Ohio River valleys• In Georgia, they settled

along the Ocmulgee, Savannah, Chattahoochee, and Coosa Rivers.

• They learned how to plant a new type of corn as well as beans from Mexico.

• Religious centers were built for ceremonies and burials.

Mississippian Indian Period• Mississippian Indians demonstrated the

following features of civilization (advanced cities):

1. cities that were centers of trade2. specialized jobs (jobs that required training) 3. organized religion and government4. record keeping (supplies and traded items) 5. advanced tools• Mississippian society was organized into social

hierarchies (levels of importance) .

Mississippian Indian Period

• Towns had 20 flat-topped pyramids with wooden palisades or moats made of dirt.

• These flat-topped pyramids of the Mississippian culture are also found in Mexico and Guatemala. This suggests they had contact with cultures of Mexico and Guatemala.

• Also, their pottery shows Mexican influence.• Their artifacts include: stone axes, bowls, & pipes• The Mississippians had no writing system or stone

architecture.

Mississippian Period

The End of Mississippian Indians

• Artifacts suggest that the Indian settlements in Georgia were abandoned after only 200 years of living there. Why?

• The Mississippian Indians were the first to meet the Europeans when they came to explore North America.

• The Mississippian Indians were devastated by the diseases that the Europeans brought.

What do anthropologists think? • Artifacts suggest many reasons why the Mississippian Indians

disappeared: 1. Overcrowding of villages2. European diseases killed them. 3. Diseases caused by unclean villages.

• The truth is that WE DON’T KNOW what happened to them! What is your hypothesis?

• The few Indians who survived from the Mississippian period banded together to create new Indian cultures. These cultures were the Creek, Cherokee, and Seminole. They are NOT part of the prehistoric Indian period because they were around when WRITTEN Native American history began.