Early Inhabitants of Georgia

1. Early Inhabitants of Georgia Paleo Archaic Woodland Mississippian

2. Native Americans or 1st Immmigrants? • One of the first questions that scientists try to decide is where did the 1st people come from that lived in “Georgia” come from and why were they moving? • Were they always here? • Did they come from Asia? • Did they come from South America? • Did they sail over the Pacific? • What do you think it the best prevailing theory (educated guess)? What evidence do you think they might have found to support that claim? • (Hint: check the map for locations of artifacts.)

3. PALEO (10,000-8,000 B.C.)“Very Old” The Real “Super Target” Store! If the theory is that the Native Americans came from Asia across the land bridge that existed during the Ice Age, the question must be asked: WHY?!? Why would anyone walk around in the ice when they would rather stay inside with a warm fire? (think back to the three necessities of life) Because: People have to be where the food can be found. Those people who lived during the Paleo era were “food gatherers”; they hunted animals, picked fruit and vegetables, fished, and ate whatever they could find. The most complete “meal” was the “Wooly Mammoth” or mastodon. The meat would feed the band of people for days and the skin, tusks, bones, meat, organs, brains, etc. could all be used for supplies. No part of the animal was wasted because there was no other source of supplies.

4. PALEO (10,000-8,000 B.C.)“Very Old” • The “Band”: Because the survival of the group depended on a successful hunt, the number of people in the band was usually 20-30 people. The group would have to be small to be able to move quickly when the food source moved away. Also, the food would have to be enough to feed everyone. • Men: The men would hunt together with large spears called “Clovis Points” and stabbed the large animal until it died. They would run up and try to stab the animal in its soft underbelly or joints. Once the animal died, the group would move near the “kill site”. Young boys would hunt when he was a teen. • Women: The women would quickly pack up the camp site and move to the “kill site”. The women and girls would help prepare the slain animal for all of its different uses. • FYI: The average age span of Paleo: 40-45 yrs!!! WHY such a short life?

5. PALEO (10,000-8,000 B.C.)“Very Old” • The Paleo Indians were a “nomadic” people- they lived wherever their food could be found. Their clan, or group of people, traveled and worked together. • The “Clovis Point” was the large spearhead that was used to stab the animal in the soft underbelly. (Clovis was an archaeologist who discovered one of the first spearheads and figured out how it was used by the Paleo people) • QUESTIONS: • Why have we found so little about the Paleo time period? • What conclusion could you draw about their daily life? What was the main focus of every day?

6. “PALEO” PONDERINGS • QUESTIONS TO PONDER: • Which is the best description of the Paleo Indians? --Food Gatherer --Hunting Farmer --Master Farmer • Why have we found so little about the Paleo time period? • What conclusion could you draw about their daily life? What was the main focus of every day?

7. ARCHAIC (8,000 -1,000 B.C.)“Old” • Why the Change? • When the Ice Age ended, the larger animals became extinct, and the people in Georgia did not have to travel as far to hunt the smaller animals. So these Archaic Indians moved on a more “seasonal” basis: winter on the seashore, summer in the mountains might be a year’s plan. • Though these Indians were still hunters & food gatherers, they did live longer in an area before moving. So, they lived in groups of bands, numbering 40-60 people and moved just a few times in a year. • All tools continued to be made from wood, stone, or bone; no metal tools were used by these Native Americans.

8. ARCHAIC (8,000 -1,000 B.C.)“Old” • Atl-Atl: Though this looks like an abbreviation for Atlanta, it really is the name for a new weapon- the spear thrower. • By shrinking the size of the spear, and transferring energy from the person to the atl-atl to the spear, a hunter could throw this weapon from a great distance. It was a perfect adaptation for hunting smaller game. • FYI: An atl-atl could propel a spear from the blacktop behind our gym all the way across the bus circle and into the trees… on a straight line! (A Native American expert did this demonstration for us several years ago at Shiloh Middle).

9. ARCHAIC (8,000 -1,000 B.C.)“Old” • Innovations: • Stone Boiling: Rocks were placed in a fire, and then moved with two forked sticks into a pit that was lined with an animal skin and filled with water. The sticks would be used to drop the rocks in the water. The rocks would make the water boil and the vegetables could be cooked! --Pottery: As people needed less time to gather food, they had time to invent things, such as simple pottery to use in cooking.

10. “ARCHAIC” ANSWERS • QUESTIONS TO PONDER: • Which is the best description of the Archaic Indians? --Food Gatherer --Hunting Farmer --Master Farmer • What kind of animals did Archaic Indians hunt? • Why did the Archaic Indians change their style of weapons? (Hint: think about the size of the target)