A Powhatan man

Who were the first people who lived in Virginia?

prehistoric camp site

They were Native Americans, or American Indians.

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 Alaskan Tundra today, close to where the first Americans crossed

from Asia several thousand years ago.

The Bering Strait

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.

Native Americans living in the Tidewater area

of Virginia around 1600 spoke Algonquian

(Algonkian) languages.

What were the names of some of the tribes?

Tidewater region

•Accomack

•Chickahominy

•Mattaponi

•Nansemond

•Pamunkey

•Potomack

•Powhatan

An original map of Virginia

An original drawing by John Smith of a Powhatan village

These tribes lived in Tidewater and spoke Algonquian:

These tribes ate seafood and raised vegetables. They hunted birds and

deer for meat. They lived in houses made from plant and animal

parts.

In the piedmont region of Virginia,

tribes spoke Siouan

languages.

The Piedmont region

An arrow for hunting fish

Corn

tassels

What were the names of some of the tribes in the Piedmont region, who

spoke Siouan languages?

Here are some of these tribes, who lived in the Piedmont and

spoke Siouan languages:

Using a weir to catch fish in a river

A stone bowl

AppomattuckAppomattuck

Manahoac Manahoac

Saponi Saponi MahyssanMahyssan

TuteloTutelo Monacan Monacan

Occaneechi Occaneechi

What was life like in a Monacan village, in the Piedmont Region, where Native Americans spoke a Siouan language?

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.

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.

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.

The Monacans also buried their dead in mounds, a tradition that makes them different from neighboring Indian nations.

mounds

Throughout the Piedmont and mountain regions, thirteen known mounds have been identified and many excavated.

mounds

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.

There was a tribe in the Allegheny (Appalachian) Plateau. This tribe was

called the Cherokee.

The Allegheny (Appalachian) Plateau

A Cherokee chief

The Cherokee spoke an Iroquoian language.

An early drawing of some Cherokee people

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.

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.

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

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

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