Native Georgians Georgia Performance Standards addressed: SS2H1 The student will read about and describe the lives of historical figures in Georgia history. a. Identify the contributions made by these historic figures: James Oglethorpe, Tomochichi, and Mary Musgrove (founding of Georgia); Sequoyah (development of a Cherokee alphabet); Jackie Robinson (sports); Martin Luther King, Jr. (civil rights); Jimmy Carter (leadership and human rights). b. Describe how everyday life of these historical figures is similar to and different from everyday life in the present (food, clothing, homes, transportation, communication, recreation, rights, and freedoms). SS2H2 The student will describe the Georgia Creek and Cherokee cultures of the past in terms of tools, clothing, homes, ways of making a living, and accomplishments. a. Describe the regions in Georgia where the Creeks and Cherokees lived and how the people used their local resources. b. Compare and contrast the Georgia Creek and Cherokee cultures of the past to Georgians today. Background Creek Prior to the early 18th Century, most of Georgia was home to American Indians belonging to a southeastern alliance known as the Creek Confederacy. Today s Creek Nation, also known as the Muskogee, were the major tribe in that alliance. According to Creek traditions, the Confederacy migrated to the southeastern United States from the Southwest. The confederacy was probably formed as a defense against other large groups to the north. The name Creek came from the shortening of Ocheese Creek Indians -- a name given by the English to the native people living along the Ocheese Creek (or Ocmulgee River). In time, the name was applied to all groups of the confederacy. Most of the groups of the confederacy shared the same language (Muskogean), types of ceremonies, and village lay-out. The Creek people lived in large permanent towns or italwa with smaller outlying villages or talofa that were associated with the larger town. Italwa were centered around plazas(pascova) used for dancing, religious ceremonies and games. It was here that the Sacred Fire was rekindled annually at the Green Corn Festival (Busk). Plazas in the towns also contained a rotunda -- a round building made of poles and mud used for council meetings -- and an open-air summer council house. The people in the villages attended ceremonies in the towns with which they were associated. Surrounding the plaza area were the family homes. Towns were governed by a Chief, or Mico, an assistant chief, and a Mico Apokta, who acted as speaker for the Chief, announcing his decisions to the people. These characteristics are very similar to what is known about the prehistoric Mississippian Culture who occupied the Etowah Mounds village. The people of the Etowah Mounds are believed to be the ancestors of the Creeks who controlled the area until the early 1500 s. When a Creek town reached a population of about 400-600 people they would split, with about half moving to a new, nearby site. The new town would build its ceremonial center and develop its own villages, but would also retain a mother-daughter relationship with its original town. This is how the confederacies were formed. Creek legends tell of palisaded, compact towns. By the 1700 s Creek towns began to spread out, reflecting a move to an agrarian lifestyle. At the end of this century it was not uncommon for each town to have outlying homes separated by a mile or more of crops. The Creek adopted the plow and ax and raised livestock. While most Creek still lived in traditional huts (not teepees) roofed with wood shingles or grass some began to build log homes with chimneys. By the end of the century Indian Agent Benjamin Hawkins described the Creek towns as being well fenced with fine stocks of cattle, horses and hogs surrounded by
fields of corn, rice and pototoes (sic). The modern capitol of the Creek Nation is in Okmulgee, OK. Cherokee The Cherokee Nation, largest of the Five Civilized Tribes of the Southeast, is a people of Iroquoian lineage. The Cherokee, who called themselves Ani -Yun wiya or Principal People, migrated to the Southeast from the Great Lakes Region. They commanded more than 40,000 square miles in the southern Appalachians by 1650 with a population estimated at 22,500. Similar to other Native Americans of the Southeast, their nation was a confederacy of towns, each subordinate to supreme chiefs. When encountered by Europeans, they were an agrarian people who lived in log homes (not tee pees) and observed sacred religious practices. During the American Revolution the Cherokees, as well as the Creek and Choctaw, supported the British and made several attacks on forts and settlements in the frontier. After 1800 the Cherokees profoundly assimilated White culture. They adopted a government patterned after the United States, wore European-style dress, and followed the white man s farming and home-building methods. Ironically, the Cherokees fought with Andrew Jackson in the Creek War (1813-14). Cherokee culture continued to flourish with the invention of the Cherokee syllabary by Sequoyah in 1821. This system, in which each character represents a syllable, produced rapid literacy. It made possible their written constitution, the spread of Christianity, and the printing of the only Native American newspaper, The Cherokee Phoenix, begun in 1828. A seat of government was built at New Echota. However, that same year gold was discovered in north Georgia s Cherokee territory. Within a decade the Principal People s native home, their Enchanted Land, would be theirs no more. Trail of Tears Between 1790 and 1830 the population of Georgia increased six-fold. The western push of the settlers created a problem. Georgians continued to take Native American lands and force them into the frontier. By 1825 the Lower Creek had been completely removed from the state under provisions of the Treaty of Indian Springs. By 1827 the Creek were gone. Cherokee had long called western Georgia home. The Cherokee Nation continued in their enchanted land until 1828. It was then that the rumored gold, for which De Soto had relentlessly searched, was discovered in the North Georgia mountains. In 1838, the United States government forcibly removed more than 16,000 Cherokee Indian people from their homelands in Tennessee, Alabama, North Carolina, and Georgia, and sent them to Indian Territory (today known as Oklahoma). The impact to the Cherokee was devastating. Hundreds of Cherokee died during their trip west, and thousands more perished from the consequences of relocation. This tragic chapter in American and Cherokee history became known as the Trail of Tears, and culminated the implementation of the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which mandated the removal of all American Indian tribes east of the Mississippi River to lands in the West.
Activities I History- (Materials maps, pictures, arrowheads, etc, Begin by asking the students what they know about Creek and Cherokee Indians. As you go through the information show the various pictures, posters, etc. Some topics to mention could be: Villages-both Creek and Cherokee lived in fairly large villages, NOT in tipis, but in wattle and daub structures and log cabins. Cherokee children naming- In most cases, the name was based on the infant s fancied resemblance to some object, on something said or done at the moment of birth, or an unusual character trait in the infant. Later in life, depending on a person s character changes or achievements, a new name might be earned? Roles for men and women- Cherokee Indians society was a matriarchy. The children took the clan of the mother, and kinship was traced through the mother s family. Women had an equal voice in the affairs of the tribe. Women were landowners and made decisions for the clans. Cherokee men could be chiefs and made political decisions for the tribe. Creek women were farmers and also did most of the child care and cooking. Older Creek boys and men were responsible for hunting and fishing. Creek men were hunters and sometimes went to war to protect their families. Sequoyah- He invented the Cherokee Syllabary. This system, in which each character represents a syllable, produced rapid literacy. It made possible their written constitution, the spread of Christianity, and the printing of the only Native American newspaper, The Cherokee Phoenix, begun in 1828. A seat of government was built at New Echota. Creek Words and Phrases Estonko? (Ihs-don-goh) Hello, how are you? Estonkis os, centv? Fine, and you? Ecenokecvyēt os I LOVE YOU Mvto (ma-doh) Thank you Enhesse My friend Cehecvrēs See you later Hompaks cē! You all eat now! Okhac-ē Funny, happy, amusing Enka! Yes!, OK!, Alright! Hopueta-ke Children Creek Numbers 1 hámken 2 hokkolen 3 tuccē 4 osten 5 cahkēpen 6 ēpaken 7 kolapaken 8 cenapaken 9 ostapaken 10 palen II Toys and Games Discuss how Indian children did not attend school before the European settlers came. Rather they learned through doing. Game and toys helped the children learn. Knee Coup This game taught hunting and stalking skills. Have the students stand in a group while you explain the rules:
The object of this game is to protect your knees and not let them get tagged while trying to tag as many other people s knees as you can. You can place your hands over your knees to protect them, but you cannot walk or run while your hands are over your knees. You must remove your hands from your knees to move around and tag other people s knees. Knees cannot be tagged if they are covered. Scoring: All players start with 0 points. Each successful tag earns one point. If a player gets tagged he must subtract a point from his score. This scoring system ensured that cheating would be found out, since if all players were honest all the scores added up would equal 0. The adults would watch the children playing this game and make note of those who was able to tag many knees while not getting tagged too often (this might mean that the child was almost ready to accompany the hunters), or who would stay in one spot with covered knees most of the time. Shell Game Each child chooses one partner and the pair finds 10 small stones or shells and sets them up like this: The object of this game is to make your opponent be the one to take the last stone or stones. The players take turns removing stones. One, two, three or four stones may be removed at a time, but all must stones removed must be in the same row. The player who removes the last stone loses. Plum Stone or Basket Game Each pair of players gets 5 plum stones; a basket, counters (stones, sticks, etc.) The plum stones (we will use wood pieces) have marks which determine points. The two players sit opposite and have the basket or bowl between them, with the five plum stones lying in the bottom. The counters are within reach at one side. As points are made, the winner takes a corresponding number of counters from the general pile and lays them beside her. The one who wins the first play takes the bowl or basket by the rim with both hands and gives it a toss sufficient to throw up all the stones, but not violent enough to make them fall outside the bowl or basket; such a throw would not count. If the throw is not such as to move all the stones, make them turn and all move about within the bowl, that throw will not count. The following are the combinations that count, that is, make points: Two moons and three whites (natural color) = 10 points. Two stars and three blacks = 10 points. One moon, one star and three whites (natural color) = 1 point. One moon, one star and three blacks = 1 point. No other combinations count anything in the game. As will be seen, there are a number which cannot be counted. If one tosses the bowl and the stones fall in such manner as to make a combination that does not count, there is no forfeit; the player merely fails to score any points. The player who wins a point, or points, keeps on tossing the bowl until she fails to make a point. She must then let her opponent toss the bowl, who will keep tossing the bowl as long as she can win a point. There are players among the Indian women who are very skilful and are able to make the stones fall frequently in the combinations that win ten points. III Native Plant Use This activity will be in crossword puzzle form. IV Story at Indian Seats (Optional)
The Song of Cherokee Rose This is a story that took place long before the Europeans arrived in America. The natives of the Florida swamps, the Seminoles, were on the warpath and many lives were lost, and they retreated from their enemy, the Cherokee. One young, handsome Seminole brave was captured and taken prisoner by the Cherokees. He was a strong lad with jet black hair and black eyes, but he had been seriously wounded and was an easy target. He was condemned to die at the stake by burning until his body was consumed by fire. This was the custom of treating enemy captives in the Cherokee culture. The young man fell ill on top of being wounded. He was too sick to stand on his feet, so the execution was postponed until the young man became well. The Cherokees wanted to see a strong, healthy warrior die, not a sick one, weak as a woman. Let him be fed until he is strong again and then we will punish him, the Chief said. And so it was decided. The young Seminole warrior was brought to a Cherokee lodge to be nursed back to health. In that home lived a Cherokee warrior and his wife and daughter. When the daughter saw the young captive, she felt sorry for him. As she tended him each day, feeding him nourishing soups and binding his wounds with herbs, her feelings of tenderness grew. With each day s passing, the two grew to appreciate each other, even though they were enemies. The feelings of sorrow and sadness turned to love for both of them. You must not die! the young maiden said to him. And, of course, the young brave did not want to die. He wanted to live his life with this lovely Cherokee girl. Finally one day, the young man said, I am getting well. You have nursed me back to health and soon they will realize that I am ready for burning at the stake and I will soon be with Our Creator. The wood is dried and ready to be fired, but I am not ready. I don t want to leave you. We must run away together, said the young Cherokee girl. As soon as night comes and it is dark, we must go or it will be too late! When night came, the Bull Alligator was heard in the distance and then the croaking song of the frogs was carried on the night air; the girl crept to where the young warrior was lying, his eyes wide open. We must go now while the night noises are loud, the girl whispered. My people will not hear us, and they are probably asleep by now. So the two crept out of the lodge slowly and once out of the lodge, they began running swiftly through the paths of the Georgia swamp. The girl was in the lead for she had known these paths well since early childhood. There were as many strange noises in that swamp as there were stars in the sky. The noises in the woods were many. After they had gone a little way, the girl suddenly stopped. Why are you standing still? the young warrior asked. I feel sad to leave my tribe and my father and mother, she answered. Do you want to go back? No! will go with you but I want to take something from my home to remember my family and our home by.
Sequoyah was born about 1776. He determined there were 86 syllables in the Cherokee language and that for his alphabet he would need a corresponding number of characters. The Cherokee syllabary was introduced in 1819.
The Cherokee alphabet is written in the syllabary form. A syllabary is an alphabet in which each letter in a word stands for a whole syllable (such as ga ) instead of a single letter (such as g ). Vowel Sounds a as a in father, or short as a in rival e as a in hate, or short as e in met i as i in pine, or short as i in pit o as o in note, approaching aw as in law u as oo in fool, or short as u in pull v as u in but, nasalized Consonant Sounds g nearly as in English, but approaching to k d nearly as in English, but approaching to t as in English go, du, dv are sometimes sounded to, tu, tv and syllables written with ti except tia sometimes vary to di. Syllables beginning with g except qa have sometimes the power of k.
tsisgwa sasa daksi inada awohali tsisdu WAHUHI ahawi gitli saloli kvtli sogwili
Native American Plant Use ACROSS 2. Spotted WINTERGREEN leaves were crushed and used to treat sores and burns. 4. Sassafras roots were used to make a TEA to treat coughs and sore throats. 5. The wood of this tree was used for their bows, and the nuts were used to make flour. HICKORY 6. The leaves and roots of this plant were used to make shampoo and soap. YUCCA DOWN 1. The tasty berries of this plant were used as food. BLUEBERRY 3. This prickly plant was used to treat cuts and burns. GREENBRIAR
Y U C C A S P O T T E D W IN T E R G R EE N B L U E B E R RY S A S S A F R A S S H IC K O RY G R E E N B R IA R
North Carolina Tennesee Alabama Georgia South Carolina Prior to European settlers
Trail of Tears