All about the ancient tribes
The Tocobaga didn’t eat only seafood, though! They were also skilled hunters. They hunted deer, rabbits, armadillos, and squirrels.
The Tocobaga Native Americans usually wore very simple clothing made of deerskin. Clothing did not play a big role in their culture. Instead, they preferred to decorate their bodies with tattoos and elaborate hand-crafted jewelry.
Tocobaga (occasionally Tocopaca) was the name of a chiefdom, its chief, and its principal town during the 16th century. The name ” Tocobaga ” is often applied to all of the native peoples of the immediate Tampa Bay area during the first Spanish colonial period (1513-1763).
Like most Native Americans, the Timucua had no written language. They farmed the rich lands of North Florida. The Tocobaga Indians were a group of prehistoric and historic Native Americans living near Tampa Bay, Florida up until roughly 1760.
The Europeans brought diseases with them that the Timucua easily caught and died from, since their bodies did not have natural resistance to the diseases. The Spanish taught the Indians how to live like Spanish did.
The ” Tocobaga ” tribe was comprised of several small chiefdoms such as Ucita, Pohoy, and Mococo, that ranged from today’s Pinellas County to Sarasota County. They maintained a fishing and hunting culture for approximately 600-800 years before being encountered by the Spanish explorers in the early 1500s.
There is some dispute as to the origin and meaning of the name ” Tampa “. It is believed to mean “sticks of fire” in the language of the Calusa, an Indian tribe that once lived south of the area. He calls it “Tanpa” and describes it as an important Calusa town.
The Tocobaga played checkers. They even made checkers.
The Calusa Indians were coastal people who ate mostly fish, oysters, and other seafood. Hunters also shot birds and small game.
Sadly, by 1711, only about 2000 Calusa were left in Florida. Diseases introduced to the natives by those from across the sea, and warfare with English backed tribes had caused the numbers to dwindle. The Spanish evacuated 270 Indians to Cuba, where almost 200 soon perished.
The Calusa (kah LOOS ah) lived on the sandy shores of the southwest coast of Florida. Calusa means “fierce people,” and they were described as a fierce, war-like people. Many smaller tribes were constantly watching for these marauding warriors.
The Apalachee are a Native American people who historically lived in the Florida Panhandle. They lived between the Aucilla River and Ochlockonee River, at the head of Apalachee Bay, an area known to Europeans as the Apalachee Province.
The Calusa tribe in Florida planted rows of trees near its villages to protect against hurricanes. Explanation: The Calusas were also distinct among other Native Americans because they were headed by a hereditary king.
The homes of the Native American tribes of Florida had similarities. All five tribes used wooden poles and branches for the frames of their homes. The Apalachee, Tequesta, Tocobaga, and Timucua all created walls and roofs from grass and palm leaves. The Timucua and Apalachee also used mud and clay in their walls.
The most common building material was Southern yellow pine. The large amounts of pitch in these trees probably aided in burning out the inside of the log to create the shape.