The Earliest Americans

1. The Earliest Americans Chapter 3

2. What happened before Oklahoma’s history was first recorded? • First prehistoric people (those who lived before recorded history) reached the Americas millions of years after the dinosaurs became extinct • First people in America here some 12,000 to 25,000 years ago • Different theories Dino tracks near Black Mesa!!

3. How’d they get here? The first wheel?

4. Beringia land bridge

6. What do you think life will be like in 1000 years? • archaeologist: scientist who study ancient cultures by examining artifacts (remains) left behind • midden: ancient garbage dump useful for studying ancient cultures

7. The modern day midden …. How will scientists 1000 years from now be able to tell how we lived by the things we threw away?

8. The same way current scientists discover things about earlier peoples. • Artifacts include people-used items such as – pottery, tools, bone, jewelry, & paintings • Petroglyphs: pictures or symbols conveying an idea • Artifacts found on the surface of the ground or near a waterway

9. How do they do it? Archaeologists: “dig”, study and document - any fragment of an artifact discovered “Put the puzzle together”

10. Searching for clues…. • Fossils: traces or remains of living things – animals, birds, & people • Most common fossils: teeth, bones, or shells • Carbon dating: isotope carbon 14 – analyzed to obtain age estimates on organic matter

11. Oklahoma reptile..

12. Paleo Indians (really old) • 1961: scientists discover evidence of Paleo Indian hunters in Oklahoma (Domebo Kill Site)

13. 1961: Columbian mammoth: bones found at the Cooperton site in Kiowa County • Speculation on human involvement

14. Soil deposits: date to about 30,000 years ago at Burnham site

15. Packard Camp Site Jake Bluff Site Domebo Kill Site Cooperton Woolly Mammoth

16. Remember these are BIG DUDES!!!! 14-16 feet tall at the shoulders

18. The people ….

19. Folsom People • Sites: Cooper Bonebed & the Waugh site as evidenced by various spear points and a painted bison skull • Dalton people: lived some 9,000-10,000 years ago • Skilled in clothing, containers, tools, & covers for shelters

20. Clovis People • Named after the New Mexico site of first artifacts • Known for their spears (spear point usually 3-4 inches long) • Important Clovis site near Stecker in Caddo County • First hunted mammoths & then switched to bison

22. Archaic Culture Foragers • Hunters and harvesters • Made flour & stored it in baskets • Pieces of bone & antler: became spear points, needles, awls, punches, and atlatl hooks • Ate a variety of wild animals • Knew how to start a fire with a wood drill • What do these skills tell us about their lifestyle?

23. Woodland Culture • About 2,000 years ago, Woodland culture emerged • Planted, cultivated, & harvested • First farms: in the Grand River area, the Ouachita Mts, the Cimarron River area, and along the Canadian & Washita Rivers • Bow and arrow came in about this time and made hunting easier • Why along the rivers?

24. Plains Village Farmers • Lived in Oklahoma from about 1,200 to 500 years ago • Grew corn, beans, squash, gourds, sunflowers, & tobacco • Hunted bison & deer • Also ate hickory nuts, walnuts, hackberry seed, wild cherries, plums, persimmons & others

25. The Moundbuilders • Built the Spiro Mounds American equivalent of King Tut’s Tomb. Grossly pillaged and looted. • Various historical backgrounds • Lived in small farming villages • Fine craftsmen: worked with stone, shell, & copper

26. Spiro mounds artifacts

27. Cahokia

29. A re-creation of the GREAT TEMPLE MOUND

30. Early Plains Indians • Nomads • Hunted buffalo, deer, antelope, rabbit, or whatever available • Foraged for wild plant foods • Lived in grass houses covered with buffalo hide • May be ancestors of Wichitas

32. Chapter 3:Early Cultures in Our Land Section 2: Historic Indian Cultures

33. Section 2: Historic Indian Cultures ESSENTIAL QUESTION: • What elements of culture were exhibited by the Indians during first contact with Europeans?

35. Section 2: Historic Indian Cultures • First Encounters • Indian Culture - The Family - Food - Plants

36. First Encounters • 1540: Coronado’s expedition firstrecorded contact between Indians & the Spanish • 1542: Spanish monks at Kaw • 1601: Juan de Oñate – explored western Oklahoma • Mid-1700s: French hunters

39. Indian Culture • Indians: believed in afterlife • Cowards & thieves punished • Life sacred to the Plains tribes • Believed in Mother Earth • Believed all things tied together • Honesty expected

40. Indian Culture The Family • Marriages permitted between related tribes & could have more than one wife • Men: warriors & hunters • Women: kept the home & family

41. Indian Culture Food • Women: prepared the food • Meats: eaten raw, roasted, boiled, or dried • Wild animals were food source • Other foods were wild honey & other natural foods

42. Indian Culture Plants • Used many wildflowers & plants • About 170 used by Indians • Many used for medicine Much of their time spent in surviving Click here to return to Main Menu.