Early Americans

Chapter 1.1

The Mound Builders

• Lived in the Midwest between 3,000 B.C. until 1700’s.– From Oklahoma to the

Atlantic Ocean.

• Adenas, Hopewells, and Mississippians

• These tribes built thousands of mounds

Location

The Mound Builders

• Great Serpent Mound in Ohio– Built more than 1,000 years ago.– Is 1,200 feet long and 20 feet wide, and covers 116 acres.– Uses: Religious ceremonies, burial, civic centers.

The Mound Builders

• Near St. Louis• Populated from 700-1400• Pyramid shaped with flat top

is the dominate feature• City of 10,000-20,000

surrounded the pyramid• Rich cultural features

Cahokia

The Mound Builders

• What do the mounds tell us?– Some American Indian tribes were sedentary– They had an organized society with a strong

ruler– They believed in some sort of religion

Peoples of the Desert

• Included tribes in the Southwest U.S.– Hohokams and

Anasazis.

Peoples of the Desert

• Both peoples farmed.– Raised corn, beans, and squash.– Found ways to irrigate the land.

• Both made excellent pottery and houses.– Used adobe, or stone and sun-dried clay

bricks

Peoples of the Desert

• Anasazi villages were known as pueblos.– Pueblos were often

built into the sides of cliffs.

– The houses could be several stories high and have 800 rooms.