Notes on the Colusa: Native American Indians That you Don't Know About

History With RCS, prehistory, archaeology: The Colusa (Indians) in what is now Florida of North America               

 

                I intend to write about the earlier people of North America from time to time. I'll begin now with Notes on the Colusa. We do not often hear about the Colusa people, but these brief notes may sharpen your interest in those whom we have called Indians.

                As recent as the 1500s the Colusa controlled much of the southwest of what is now the state of Florida. The Colusa defended their land from the aggression of others, including Europeans. The Spaniards knew them as fierce.

                The Caloosahatchee river, with its mouth on the southwest of the Florida peninsula, was central to their lands.

                They lived mostly along inland waterways and developed those waterways for transportation and food production. The sea was also a source of food for them. They left middens of seashells large enough to compete in size with their great mounds and earthworks. They fished with nets and traps, and also fashioned good looking and effective hooks.

                The Colusa may have been directly to the Paleoindians of 10,000 BC. They had seagoing vessels and traded with the people of the Caribbean islands. In later years they were famed for their wide use of seashells as ornaments and implements.

                They were physically well developed and in colonial times were known for being 3 to 4 inches taller than the usual European man.

                The Colusa had a strong influences on the "tribes" around them. That influence, in some part, may have been due to their wide trading network. That trade was carried on dugouts especially on their inland waterways. They also built and used larger seagoing vessels. They visited the island we now call Cuba and navigated to farther islands. They also traveled the Gulf of Mexico to the mouth of the Mississippi. 

                Their homes were built on platforms on pilings over the water of their waterways. They could get into their dugout and take the "water road" to the "water highway"  on to Mississippi or Cuba. Their buildings were well made and ha particularly handsome roofs of palmetto fronds. It is said that some of their buildings were large enough to accommodate a great number of people. The Caloosa/Colusa were excellent wood workers and they did some fine wood carving. 

                They were also excellent farmers, sailors, fishermen, and traders. Their large gardens were often surrounded by canals and were built up and fertilized by dredging those canals. They are probably responsible for the construction of what we have called bayous.

                Their high level culture has been dated to well before 100 BC. Several of their middens and earthworks have been dated to at least that time.

                We have a lot to learn from and about these people. Investigations into their agricultural techniques may be of important use to us soon. 

                You may publish comments below. I may publish what you have to contribute about the Colusa. More to come.

                                                                                RCS

 

Search and Find

 History With RCS: Hints for searching this blog and  giving yourself a chance of finding what you are looking for or something interesting. 

                 

        Scroll, Popular Posts, archive dates, search function, and Labels name five ways available to you for finding that which interests you.

                You are probably familiar with scrolling. You may have a scroll wheel on your mouse. By turning it one way you may scroll down the blog viewing post after post. By turning it the other way you can retrace your way to the top of the blog. In scrolling down you may come to a place which seems to be the end, but that may not be so. Scroll back to the last words you can see. They may say "newer posts." Click on 'newer posts" and be taken back to the first of the blog. However, those last words may say "older posts." Click on "older posts" and be taken to a new world of posts to scroll though and check out. 

    

 Using "Labels" in the right hand column or the search function at the top left side of the page are to good ways to find what you are looking for.

            

            Find interesting topics by a search of "Labels" in the right hand column of this blog. Read and scroll down. When you find your topic click on it an seen what comes up.

             Or, Look at the upper left-hand corner of the blog and see the space to print your one or two word search for your topic of interest, click on the magnifying glass and see what appears on your page.

            When you type a word into that white blank in the upper left-hand corner of this blog and then click on the magnifying glass you may instructively surprised.


            Searches can be fun and finding what you want is satisfying.

 

            Tell me if you want more search info.



                                                                    by Richard

Discuss Ukraine

History With RCS: Thoughtful words about some recent  history                             

Balt History: an exploration

History With RCS: Toward an exploration of Baltic Sea Cultures. 

                Before getting into the cultures active in the area I would like to introduce some of its geological and geographic features. But as a taste of doings and happenings to come I'll mention a few. Amber has long been collected and traded there. River and sea commerce has long been very active. Even now Russian and Dane meet there, Finn and Swede too, and a good many more. Ancient cultures there were Scythian, Celt, and Slav to name a few. Norsemen learn viking their and reach Byzantium.

                Th Baltic Sea is an important feature on the face of Earth and on the course of world history. It has been called a brackish inland sea the geological history of which is unclear. You can check it out a Google Maps and elsewhere.

                If you look at the Atlantic Ocean and looked to its northeast margin and there looked landward you would see a large body of water with outlet to the Atlantic. It drains into the Atlantic through the Danish straights by of the little, somewhat shallow, Kattagat sea If you were a seaman you might note passing through the Great Belt and the Little Belt. Once well within the Sea you could find some prominent gulfs and bays. There is the Gulf of Bothnia and the Bay of Bothnia, The Gulf of Finland, the Gulf of Riga, and the bay of Gdansk.

                That shallow little sea called Kattagat is bounded by the Jutlandic Peninsula in the west, the Danish Straights and the Baltic Sea to the south and the shores of Sweden to the east. It's okay if you feel more disoriented then oriented. You will begin to remember the names and that is a good start.

                The word bothnia seems to have referred to lowlands or to lowland shores. The Gulf of Bothnia is fairly deep, but geologically the land beneath it is still rising from its release from its Ice Age burden of ice. It can still freeze over in winter.

               Take a breath, there are more geographic references to come, but finally with some admixture of history. 

                You could help us with info about the Gulf of Bothnia. I am sure that it is important in the stories of both Finland and Sweden. A 15th century navigator may have referred to it as the Mare Gotticus. Ottar, a viking age adventurer in the 9the century may have referred to it as the Kven Sea.

                Bothnia Bay may be thought of as a northern landward extension of the Gulf of Bothnia. Both Bay and Gulf may freeze over in winter.

                The Gulf of Finland is the eastern most branch of the Baltic Sea. It extends between Finland on the north, and Estonia on the south, to Saint Petersburg, Russia in the east where the river Neva flows into it. Other major cities on that gulf are Helsinki and Tallinn.

                I am checking many facts with Wikipedia but errors here are surely mine. Please feel free to correct errors and to make useful additions by way of "comments" at the end of this post.

                In the Post Ice Age of the Gulf of Finland that gulf was preceded by the Littorina Sea. The level of that sea was about 30 feet above present sea level. By some 4,000 years ago, the Littorina Sea had receded to about present level.

                Archaeologists have found that the lands along the Gulf of Finland began to be settled in about 9,000 BC, not long after the last Ice Age. Returning to our own Age, as early as 1905 AD, eleven neolithic settlements had been found along the Gulf. Among the early cultures were Finnic, Eesti, Votes/Chud, Izorians, and Korela. 

                We have begun to talk pre-historic. So, now we are considering  people!

                There is evidence that between about 700 AD and 900 AD East Slavs, Ilman Slavs, and Krivichs were along the Neva river and the Gulf of Finland. These cultures practiced agriculture and animal husbandry. Between 700 AD and 1,200 AD the river Neva and the gulf were part of the inland waterway from Scandinavia to the Byzantine Empire. Norsemen were practicing viking along these waterways.

                Now we have entered historic times and there are documents to prove it! 

                Historic information becomes more abundant from 850 AD when the Gulf of Finland was held by Russians and after 1229 when Danes took control. During this period the city of Reval was established on what was to become the area of Tallinn. There is a lot to find out about this Baltic area and the finds are becoming more abundant.

                The Gulf of Riga of the Baltic Sea lies between modern Latvia and Estonia. We can learn more of this gulf through a study of the histories of these two lands. A look at the cities of Riga, Parnu, Jumala, and Kuressare could help too. I bet we can learn more about their earliest days.

                The Bay of Gdansk is taking my interest already. It's history may may touch on the lives of some of my Prussian, Polish, and even German ancestors. The Vistula River flows into it. Some consider the Bay widening to include Russian Kaliningrad and the coast of Lithuania.

                There be Kursenieki on this bay. They have been there long. They call their language Curonian. There are those who the language as related to Latvian. They have been called Prussian Latvians. They are a mystery to which their language may be a clue. They are certainly not a geographically isolated people. They are on a well visited sea coast and near the mouth of a long navigated river and so have witnessed much trade and commerce.

                Before 1,200 AD a Curonian people held a privileged position on the Baltic Sea. The Coruland Peninsula was theirs. However, by the mid 1600s they are not mentioned. The Curonian Peninsula is now western Latvia so one supposes that those of Curonian blood are now mostly of Latvian culture, but bet Latvian culture is now a bit Curonian. There is some discussion as to whether they originally came from the east or the west. I believe that they may have been the first to arrive on the Sea of all who are now there. 

                We are still looking at a lot of geography. Geography does effect culture and the story of culture is history. As we progress we may see the people more clearly in their backdrop of Baltic Sea and surrounding lands. We begin to see how people can be grounded in their geography. We have already learned the names of some of the people who have found their home here around this sea.

                Let's get back to where the Baltic waters meet the Atlantic ocean. Kattagat, the name of the little sea area near the Baltic entrance to the Atlantic is probably Swedish origin. I seem to remember a queen Kattagat who may have been a Swede. This sea is certainly placed so as to be Scandinavian. The Jutland peninsula juts here. It is part of Jutland. Long ago this same peninsula was called the Cimbric or Cimbrian peninsula. Now it is part of Denmark; Jutes and Cimbri used to live there.

                Waite a minute, the Cimbri are a people new to me. They are the first people, we know about, to live on this peninsula not far from the Baltic entrance to the Atlantic. I find that they have been thought to be Gaulish or Celtic and the Jutland peninsula was once Cimbrian peninsula. The meaning of Celt is a bit broad, but they are generally accepted to be early Indo-Eurpoean arrivals. Gaulish often refers to and early Celtic language. It may prove interesting to learn more of these guys, and gals. Is there any archaeological evidence of them on the peninsula? I'll try to be alert to historical documentation of them. There name is a big hint.

                It does seem that there is evidence of there being a long period of of annual migrations from the Baltic area and perhaps England and Ireland to the Iberian peninsula and back with the seasons from pre- Roman times. It sounds right and amazing at the same time. There was a whole lot of motion going on. There was even a Cimbria military expedition against 1st century Rome! Who are these Cambrians? Were they some of the Celts who joined Carthaginians to resist Rome. Some of those Celts where from Ireland.

                It has been said that there were Belgians of Cimbrian origin. I see no evidence of Cimbrians being German, other than the Romans calling everyone in the area German. 

                Scythian has been called Cimerian. Could Cimerian be Cimbrian? Cimbrians seem to have been a trading people and Scythians were great traders even before their Hellenization. I may be reaching to far.

            This brings us to the end of these preliminary words here. I intend there to be more. When you are interested please tell me so. Also if you know or find info on the Cimbri, PLEASE tell us about it here. Use the "comments" section just below. If you are one who has not yet explored this blog, get busy. 

                Thank you for reading.

 

                                                                       rcs 

       

Chickamauga Wars: the earliest U.S. war?

History With RCS: Our American ancestors, right from 1776, warred about as much we war now. I hope to give you some short histories of a few of those wars in the future.

                Right now here are a few words on the "Chickamauga War:"

                The history books talk a bit about the Chickamauga War, but I like to say wars, because Chickamauga wars started early and lasted long. Some call them the Cherokee Wars. When Cherokee ancestors protected their families and territory from the violence of our ancestors, our ancestors killed them; killed them man, woman, and child; killed them and took their homes and land. Ancestors, theirs and ours, killed each other. Our ancestors often proved to be the better killers. 

                Still the Cherokee people, with the sometimes help of other peoples such as the Muskogee and Shawnee, actively resisted for nearly a century. In some history books those wars continued for only about 20 years.

                Much of those struggles took place in what we might call the northern tier of the  southern states; states like Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Arkansas, and North Carolina.

                Mostly the Cherokee depended on their native allies, but they also allied themselves with the Kingdom of Great Britain to protect themselves from invasion and occupation by Americans. 

                The Cherokee, it may well be remembered, are one of we called the civilized tribes. They were called civilized for a variety of reasons; reasons such as their life style and their way of dealing with others.
                

                They were also one of the first tribes to widely intermarry with Europeans. They may well have intermarried with Europeans well before the first colonies were established in North America. The Cherokee, I believe, have long established bloodlines with Portugues, Irish, Scots, Welsh, and others.

                During much of the most severe strife between Cherokee and American an important Cherokee leader was Dragging Canoe.  

                The Cherokee are distant relatives of the Iroquoi and spoke and Iroquoian language. They probably migrated south from Iroquois territory around the Great Lakes in pre Columbian times. So, the Cherokee probably dispossessed others to claim territory in what are now US states.

                I plan to write more about our wars.

                Was Nancy Ward a news paper Cherokee?





                                                                                            by Richard Sheehan

Neanderthals: First comments. You are not completely Neanderthal

 History With RCS: 

                

                Do you know anyone who collected crystals? Neanderthals did.

                Some Neanderthals have lived as recently as 28,000 years ago.  49,000 years ago they were probably already a "dying" race.

                 

                Many Neanderthals may have had red hair.

                It appears that through important periods of time that Neanderthals were much fewer than "us." I use parenthesis because, in some part, we may be them.

                Severe climate changes, including sever weather and storms impacted us and neanderthals. Sea levels were much lower during most of the time of neanderthals, so more land was available to them, though a significant part of it may have been covered with ice much of that time.

 

            They evidently collected fossils and crystals, and played the flute. The painted the interior of some caves; some beautifully, some more than 65,000 years ago!

                They were more evolved to resist cold then are most of us. Remember, nearly all of us may be part Neanderthal. It now seems a fact that over a certain period of time Neanderthal and homo sapien interbred. 

                There is some good evidence that they were seafaring 150,000 years ago! There is significant evidence that they used herbal medicine to better effect than we do. Still it is possible that we contributed to their extinction with our "germs," helped by changing climate.

                There is still much to be learned of these cousins of ours and we are learning more each year.

                Thank you for reading.

                                                                                                                        rcs

      

Read These Posts in Your Language

  

History With RCS: You can read these posts in your own language with just a click.

                If you are from Sri Lanka, Brazil, Singapore, Pakistan, Peru, Estonia, Russia, Slovenia, Argentina, Switzerland, Belgium, Malaysia, Portugal, Cyprus, Austria, Mexico, Poland, Trinidad and Tobago, Netherlands, Malta, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, or  Uruguay, Chile, South Africa, Afghanistan, our translation function has your language and many others. 
  
            Check the top left hand column of this blog and you change the post to a language you are comfortable with. The translations are not always perfect, but many of our posts translate well.

                            RCS

  

A Good Reason Not to Love History

            

Mago Bill: A good reason not to love History.                    

It is not all about Ukraine. It's about us too. Yes, You and me. Please try to check the history or to find someone who can. It may be difficult to take, but can help us stay sane. Help us to learn more. Use the "comments" section below. You can comment anonomously if you wish. Honor and honesty appreciated.

                        rcs