Native Americans

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Native Americans of Virginia
A Powhatan man
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Who were the first people who lived in Virginia?
prehistoric camp site
They were Native Americans, or American Indians.
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Native Americans, often called American Indians,
came from Asia to America across what is now the
Bering Sea, during the last great Ice Age. They
settled across all of Virginia thousands of years
ago.
The Bering Strait
The Alaskan Tundra today, close to where the
first Americans crossed from Asia several
thousand years ago.
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They settled all over Virginia, as well as all
over North and South America.
This is a drawing by John Smith of Indians
hunting from a canoe, as well as on land,in the
Tidewater area of Virginia.
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Native Americans living in the Tidewater area of
Virginia around 1600 spoke Algonquian (Algonkian)
languages.
Tidewater region
What were the names of some of the tribes?
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These tribes lived in Tidewater and spoke
Algonquian
An original map of Virginia

• Accomack
• Chickahominy
• Mattaponi
• Nansemond
• Pamunkey
• Potomack
• Powhatan

An original drawing by John Smith of a Powhatan
village
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These tribes ate seafood and raised vegetables.
They hunted birds and deer for meat. They lived
in houses made from plant and animal parts.
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In the piedmont region of Virginia, tribes spoke
Siouan languages.
An arrow for hunting fish
Corn tassels
The Piedmont region
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What were the names of some of the tribes in the
Piedmont region, who spoke Siouan languages?
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Here are some of these tribes, who lived in the
Piedmont and spoke Siouan languages
A stone bowl
Appomattuck Manahoac Saponi Mahyssan
Tutelo Monacan Occaneechi
Using a weir to catch fish in a river
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What was life like in a Monacan village, in the
Piedmont Region, where Native Americans spoke a
Siouan language?
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The Monacans were an agricultural (farming)
people who grew the "Three Sisters" crops of
corn, beans and squash, as well as a wide variety
of other foods, including sunflowers, fruit
trees, wild grapes and nuts.
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They lived in villages with palisade (fort)
walls, and their homes were dome-shaped
structures of bark and reed mats.
A Monacan dwelling, made from poles, bark, and
animal skins.
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These Monacan ancestors hunted deer, elk and
buffalo, and they would leave their villages
every year to visit hunting camps known to have
plenty of game.
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The Monacans also buried their dead in mounds, a
tradition that makes them different from
neighboring Indian nations.
mounds
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Throughout the Piedmont and mountain regions,
thirteen known mounds have been identified and
many excavated.
mounds
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In these mounds, archaeologists have found
interesting information about the lives of these
First Americans, whose ancestors inhabited our
region for more than 10,000 years.
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There was a tribe in the Allegheny (Appalachian)
Plateau. This tribe was called the Cherokee.
The Allegheny (Appalachian) Plateau
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The Cherokee spoke an Iroquoian language.
A Cherokee chief
An early drawing of some Cherokee people
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They lived in homes of wooden frames covered with
vines and of saplings (small trees) covered with
clay. They lived in small communities, often in
small valleys by rivers.
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Each village had a council house where ceremonies
and tribal meetings were held. The council house
was seven-sided to represent the seven clans of
the Cherokee Bird, Paint, Deer, Wolf, Blue, Long
Hair, and Wild Potato.
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Each tribe elected two chiefs -- a Peace Chief
who counseled during peaceful times and a War
Chief who made decisions during times of war.
A modern Cherokee man
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However, the Chiefs did not rule absolutely.
Decision making was a more democratic process,
with tribal members having the opportunity to
voice concerns.
A modern-day Cherokee man
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So we know that American Indians lived all over
Virginia. They spoke three kinds of languages
and had diverse (different) cultures.
Thank you for watching my show. Peace to you and
your tribe, Mrs. Wooding