Native American prehistory—Northeast
Native American prehistory in the Northeast Woodlands is characterized by the rich cultural heritage of various Indigenous groups, primarily those speaking Algonquian and Iroquoian languages. Evidence suggests that these populations have inhabited the region for thousands of years, with significant archaeological findings tracing their development. Early inhabitants, known as Paleo-Eastern Woodlanders, utilized stone tools and engaged in foraging, with pottery styles evolving from grit-tempered to fiber-tempered by around 500 b.c.e.
Cultural influences from the Adena and Hopewell traditions began to shape the region from about 1000 b.c.e., introducing new societal structures and ceremonial practices. The emergence of the Owasco archaeological complex marked a pivotal shift toward agriculture, as Iroquoian-speaking groups formed tribal units and cultivated crops, laying the foundation for more permanent settlements. By around 100 c.e., a slash-and-burn agricultural system was established, with maize being introduced around 800 c.e. This agricultural shift had a profound impact, diminishing the religious authority of earlier mound-building cultures.
The Northeast Woodlands served as a dynamic hub for cultural exchange and migration, fostering connections with surrounding regions and setting the stage for interactions with European explorers in the 1600s. This complex prehistory reflects the adaptive strategies and diverse cultural practices of Native American communities in the Northeast.
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Native American prehistory—Northeast
Date: c. 9000 b.c.e.-c. 1600 c.e.
Location: Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin (United States); New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, southern Ontario, southern Quebec (Canada)
Cultures affected: Abenaki, Adena, Algonquin, Erie, Fox, Hopewell, Huron, Illinois, Iroquois, Kickapoo, Lenni Lenape, Mahican, Maliseet, Massachusett, Menominee, Miami, Micmac, Mohawk, Nanticoke, Narragansett, Neutral, Old Copper, Ottawa, Owasca, Passamaquoddy, Pequot, Petun, Potawatomi, Sauk, Shawnee, Susquehannock, Tuscarora, Wampanoag, Winnebago, Woodland
The Northeast Woodlands region was the heartland of the forebears of the Algonquian language family. Evidence suggests that Iroquoian speakers have also lived there for thousands of years.
Paleo-Eastern Woodlanders used stone tools and foraged for small game and seasonal plants. Grit-tempered, cord-marked pottery dates from 2500 b.c.e., and fiber-tempered pottery appeared at about 500 b.c.e. Evidence suggests the Adena cultural influence from about 1000 b.c.e. and then Hopewell mound cultural influences from the beginning of the millennium entered the Northeast. After 500 c.e., the region was the recipient of migrations from Caddoan-speaking or Siouan-speaking people of the Mississippian mound cultures. The most important influence on the area two thousand years ago was the agricultural culture associated with Iroquoian-speaking people, who emerged from an archaeological complex called Owasco. It was the Owasco who began to create tribal units and to cultivate crops, returning to agricultural sites year after year simply because certain crops grew well in certain soils and zones.
Native seeds such as squash and bottle gourds have been gathered and planted by paleo-Indians of the Northeast Woodlands for four thousand years. Local economies based on the slash-and-burn agriculture of many native crops had evolved by about 100 c.e. It was only around 800 c.e. that maize (corn) was introduced, probably from the Southwest. It may have been the introduction of corn throughout the continent that lessened the religious influence of the mound-building culture called Hopewell. The cultivation of corn and corn’s concomitant mythologies loosened the religious hold Hopewell thought had on the Northeast.
The Northeast Woodlands have long had cultural interchanges with other areas, and this area was the focus of migratory movement from the Great Lakes, the Ohio River valley, and the Eastern shore routes for thousands of years, setting the stage for the arrival of Europeans in the 1600’s.
Bibliography
Jennings, Jesse D. Prehistory of North America. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1968.
Newcomb, William. North American Indians: An Anthropological Perspective. Pacific Palisades, Calif.: Goodyear, 1974.