Native Americans in Beaufort District

Once upon a time, Native Americans roamed our wetlands, fished our estuaries, and camped along our riverbanks. Many small Native American groups lived in the area. These former residents left behind shell middens, pottery shards, and their words upon our landscape: Wimbee, Combahee, Kussoh, Yamasee, Pocotaligo, Coosawatchie, Daufuskie, Salkehatchie, etc. 

Cassi's display in the Research Room about Native American resources we have shows the breadth and scope of our offerings. 

Native American history, up to the point of European contact, can be divided into four main historical periods:

The Paleo-Indian Period

10000 BCE - 8000 BCE

Remnants of Paleo-Indian culture in the Historic Beaufort District are found considerably further inland than today's epicenter of civilization--the coast. It was around fifteen degrees cooler then, 11000-12000 years ago, when the first people inhabited the area. The cooler, wetter climate accompanying a variety and abundance of herding animals (many of which are extinct today) attributed to the highly mobile nature of early American peoples. Although many artifacts of their habitation are found in the more inland reaches of the Historic Beaufort District (namely today's Allendale County,) few indications of their existence can be found in today's coastal regions. But, did you know that during the time of Paleo-Indians the Carolina coast was approximately 50 miles further east than it is now? It is possible that all coastal Paleo-Indian artifacts have been swallowed up by the Atlantic!

The Archaic Period

8000 BCD - 2000 BCE

Glacial retreat and gradual global warming at the end of the Paleo-Indian Period at the beginning of the Archaic Period raised the sea levels to within 13 feet of today's levels. The sea islands and today's Carolina "lowcountry" began to take shape. Indian populations grew while mammoths and mastodon, along with various other large mammals, became extinct. Shellfish, fish, and turtle became Indian diet essentials.

The Woodland Period

2000 BCE - 1000 BCE

While fired-clay pottery shards often indicate the Woodland Period Indian presence, Indian shell mounds are the most prevalent evidence of this Indian culture in the Historic Beaufort District. Evidence of this culture can be found on Hilton Head Island, Coosaw Island, Daws Island, and St. Helena Island. For more information about a few Indian shell mounds in Beaufort County, check out the SC Department of Natural Resources--Managed Lands website.

The Mississippian Period

1000 CE - 1600 CE

Archaeological sites of this period are found on just about every sea island of Beaufort County, as well as many inland rivers and creeks. We know more about this culture than any other Paleo-Indian civilization due to European exploration and expansion. At the time of first European contact, established agricultural practices, artistic expression, and ceremonial practices characterized this diverse and thriving culture. Unfortunately, this golden age of Indian culture would soon be demolished by disease, warfare, enslavement and exploitation.

Many of the 200 or so archaeology reports that we have in the Research Room begin with an examination of the remains of the Native Americans who once lived in Beaufort District. 

The groups tended to be rather small in size and unorganized, key factors in the ability of European newcomers to successfully take advantage of them. Some Native Americans did fight back - and one group almost won! 

According to Dr. Chester DePratter, the Yamasee tribe moved into the Port Royal Sound area around 1683 and resided here for a short period. They allied themselves with the English, attacking Spanish-allied Indians throughout Florida. Captured Indians were then sold as slaves in Carolina or transported to other British colonies. The Yamasee were critical in a general uprising of Native Americans against the British traders and settlers of the Carolinas beginning with the Good Friday Massacre of 1715 at Pocotaligo. For decades the Yamasee were on the run. Many Yamasee survivors eventually relocated to Cuba with the Spaniards in 1763 at the end of the Seven Years War.  [Source: "The Yamasee Indians in South Carolina" by Chester B. DePratter, Legacy, vol. 19, no. 1, July 2015, pp. 14 - 16] 

In other words, for a group that only lived here for about 35 years before the Europeans arrived with an approximate population of 1000 persons, the Yamasee played a critical role in the most important colonial war that few remember, the Yamasee War of 1715 - 1717.  

Learn about intrepid English adventurer Henry Woodward who voluntarily stayed behind to live among the Native Americans in 1666. He learned Indian languages and the geopolitics of the Southeast by forging personal relationships with leaders of some of the Indian tribes in the area. He actively gathered intelligence for his employers to wrest control of the southeastern United States from the Spanish. 

There are a host of resources about the local Native Americans in  the BDC's WordPress blog. As is customary for that blog, resources are divided into materials you can find online, materials you can borrow from the Library, and those materials that are only available by appointment in our Research Room. 

For the time being, access to the Research Room remains limited. Be sure to call at least a few days in advance of your preferred appointment date and time. That way, you'll have the best chance of securing the slot you most want.

Reminder: The Thanksgiving holidays draw nigh. The Research Room will be closed on Thursday and Friday, November 25 - 26, 2021. We will re-open for customers with appointments on Monday, November 29th.