The First South Carolinians

The Cherokee, Catawba, and Yemassee

Why we rememberLong before South Carolina became a state, Native Americans settled here. There are no written records to help us learn about the history of these people. As we find bits of pottery, tools, and other items the Native Americans made, we gather clues about what their lives were like long ago.

Native Americans in South Carolina, c. 1670

Overview

• Groups settled in different regions of South Carolina.

• Cherokee – Northwest part of state(Blue Ridge and hilly western

Piedmont)• Catawba - Piedmont (Up Country)• Yemassee – Coast (Low Country)

Native American Tribes

• The tribes of the Eastern Woodlands living in South Carolina differed from one another in language. However, the culture and government structure of these tribes were similar.

• The physical environment of each tribal area played a large role in shaping each culture.

What does culture mean?

• Culture is the way of life, customs, or traditions for a group of people. – The type of gods people believe in– The type of games people play– The dances and stories they tell– The type of things people make – The places they live

All of these things go into creating the culture for a particular group.

Cherokee

The Cherokee madetheir home in the Blue Ridge mountains and the rolling hills

Of the Piedmont regions

•The Cherokee settled near river systems. •There were many villages in the Cherokee Nation.

• The villages were looselyunited with each other. Theyvisited or traded with each other.

•The had a well traveled trail that ran from the mountainsto the Atlantic Ocean.

Cherokee Way of Life

• Built many towns along rivers of the Up Country

• 30 – 60 homes in each town

• Rivers were important for:– Fishing– Travel by canoe– Trading (clothing, food, art)– Sharing news

Cherokee

Cherokee travelled from village to village in dugout canoes. They were made from trees.

Cherokee Way of Life

• Men hunted bear, deer, and turkey for food

• Women gathered nuts and farmed the land

• Gardens – corn, beans, squash, & melons

• Clothing – deerskin

Hunters

gatherers

fishermen

farmers

Cherokee lived in long houses during the summer.

In the winter the Cherokee lived in wattle and daub houses like this one. TheyWere houses made of grasses and twigs and held together with mud.

Cherokee

• The Cherokee were powerful and thought of themselves as “the real people”

• Invented a system for writing the Cherokee language in the 1800’s

• Cherokee writing was used in the schools, books, and newspapers

Famous Cherokee leader

Cherokee Government

• Their villages were run by councils where different leaders made decisions affecting the people

• The leaders were elected and the Cherokee had a form of a constitution.

• Cherokee women sat on the village councils and had a significant voice in whether or not the tribe went to war.

Lesson 1 Review

Write a summary for the details below.

They built homes and

canoes from wood.

They farmed the land

They fished in

rivers

The Cherokee used natural resources to

survive.

Lesson 1 Review

2. Where did the Cherokee settle in South Carolina?

3. Name two traditions that are part of Cherokee culture.

4. Where did the Cherokee conduct their government business?

5. Describe a Cherokee village from long ago.

The Catawba“River People”

• Lived off the land of the Piedmont.• They were also hunters and farmers and

traveled the rivers in dugout canoes.• They were very powerful near their part of

the state where the city of Rock Hill is located today.

CatawbaHomes• Round or

oval• Made of

saplings or young trees

• Covered with bark

• Had a fireplace inside with a hole for smoke

Wigwam

The Catawbabuilt villages

as shownIn this

picture. They lived in

wigwams

Like the Cherokee

the Catawbabuilt a council

house formeetings.

The Catawba were famous for their pottery. They were more peaceful than other Native American groups of their time. They used their time

to be creative rather than aggressive.

The Catawba

Streamline Video 2:45

Compare & Contrast

To compare is to show how things are alike.

To contrast is to show how things are different.

In your notebook, compare and contrast your life to the lives of the early Cherokee.

Catawba

HomesFood

Crafts

Government

The Yemassee

• They lived in the coastal zone on the southern coast of SC, near the Georgia border.

Yemassee

• They lived in wigwams close to the coast in the summer and farther inland in wattle and daub houses along river during the winter.

• They hunted, fished, farmed, and gathered clams and oysters.