Indigenous peoples of the Eastern Woodlands

The Indigenous peoples of the Eastern Woodlands were the Native North American cultures that lived in the Eastern United States and Canada. The cultures of the Eastern Woodlands consisted primarily of Algonquian-, Iroquoian-, Muskogean-, and Siouan-speaking peoples who ranged from the forests of eastern Canada, south to Florida, and west to the Mississippi River. In early times, these cultures were prominently hunters, although many also practiced agriculture, depending on the local geography. They also developed a complex social structure that consisted of a clan-based tribal village led by a chief. The peoples of the Eastern Woodlands were among the first Indigenous people of North America encountered by European colonists. At first, the groups worked together in relative peace, although that relationship was later damaged when larger numbers of settlers began arriving in North America.

Background

For many years, scientists believed the first peoples in the Americas migrated over a land bridge connecting Asia and North America about 13,500 years ago. This culture is known as the Clovis culture because of a significant archeological find of stone spear points made near Clovis, New Mexico, in the 1930s. Archeologists have since determined that humans likely came to North America from Asia in waves beginning about 25,000 years ago and fanned out across North America and into South America.

In North America, these first Americans settled in ten cultural regions that were greatly shaped by geography and climate. These were the Arctic peoples of the far north, the Subarctic peoples in the swampy tundra of northern Canada, and the peoples of the Northwest Coast who relied upon the Pacific Ocean for their survival. Several hunter-gatherer peoples lived in the California region, while the peoples of the Plateau lived in what is today Idaho, Montana, and eastern sections of Oregon and Washington. The people of the Great Basin inhabited the arid region west of the Rocky Mountains and east of the Sierra Nevadas. Some peoples of the Southwest desert lived as semi-nomadic hunters, while others established permanent farming communities.

The many cultures of the Plains lived on the vast prairies of the Midwest from Canada down to the Gulf of Mexico. The Southeast peoples were accomplished farmers who lived in what are today the Gulf states east of the Mississippi River. The Northeast peoples were hunters and farmers who lived in a wide area from eastern Canada down to North Carolina.

Overview

The first evidence of human habitation in the eastern part of North America can be traced back to at least 11,000 BCE. Some major evidence consists of two Clovis-era spear points found in New York State. Over the following millennia, the Indigenous peoples of eastern North America developed an advanced system of trade, social structure, agriculture, and architecture.

The earliest known ancestors of what would become the Eastern Woodlands cultures were the Adena and Hopewell peoples, who lived in the Ohio and Mississippi River valleys from about 800 BCE to 800 CE. The Adena were semi-nomadic hunter-gatherers who moved with the seasons, while the Hopewell lived in more permanent settlements and planted crops to supplement their hunting.

While the Eastern Woodlands people comprised a wide range of Indigenous cultures, they shared many common features. Most were hunters, with deer being their primary game, although the peoples who lived near the coasts also hunted sea mammals such as seals and whales. Hunters stalked their game with stone-tipped projectiles, clubs, and stone knives. They also added to their diet by hunting smaller game, fishing, and eating shellfish. Many Eastern Woodlands peoples were also farmers who grew beans, corn, pumpkin, squash, and other crops. Hunting was more prevalent farther north, while farming dominated farther south.

The cultures of the Eastern Woodlands had a class-based social structure that consisted of a tribal chief at the top, followed by his children, high-ranking tribal leaders, and then the common people. The position of tribal chief was often hereditary and passed down through the male line. Their housing was determined by their geography, with some living in bark-covered conical- or domed-shaped structures called wigwams that could be taken down and moved more easily. Later, many lived in permanent wooden longhouses, which served as communal structures.

The people of the Eastern Woodlands spoke many different languages, but they are primarily divided into the Algonquian, Iroquoian, Muskogean, and Siouan language families. The Algonquian languages were spoken by the Indigenous peoples of eastern Canada and the northeastern United States. Among these peoples are the Mi’kmaq, a culture whose traditional lands were in the Canadian Maritime provinces and Maine. The Mi’kmaq were among the first peoples of the Eastern Woodlands to encounter European settlers. In 1610, a Mi’kmaq chief converted to Catholicism and established a treaty of trade with the Vatican, the first known agreement between the Indigenous peoples of North America and a foreign nation. Other Algonquian groups include the Lenape, the Mohegan, the Narragansett, and the Cree.

Iroquoian languages were spoken by the peoples of southern Ontario, New York State, the Mid-Atlantic, and parts of the South. The most well-known group of Iroquoian peoples are likely the six nations of the Iroquois Confederacy—the Cayuga, Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Seneca, and Tuscarora. In the language of the people, they are known as the Haudenosaunee, or “People of the Longhouse.” The confederacy’s territory encompassed much of upstate New York and southern Ontario. The Iroquois created North America’s first constitution, a framework of laws known as the Great Law of Peace. It later became one of the inspirations for the Constitution of the United States.

The Muskogean languages were spoken among the peoples of the Southeastern United States. These people included the Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole. These groups, along with the Iroquoian-speaking Cherokee, were known as the “Five Civilized Tribes” because of their advanced cultural, political, and economic systems. From the 1830s to the 1850s, members of these groups were forced from their lands in the Southeast and made to march westward to Oklahoma, a deadly journey that became known as the Trail of Tears.

The Siouan languages were spoken primarily by the Indigenous people of the Great Plains, but pockets of the language were found in the Ohio Valley, Virginia, the Carolinas, and Mississippi. Among its speakers were the Catawba people, who lived in what is today North and South Carolina. The Tutelo people originated in Virginia and West Virginia before later moving to North Carolina, Pennsylvania, New York, and Canada.

Bibliography

Bishop, Charles A., and Zach Parrott. “Eastern Woodlands Indigenous Peoples in Canada.” The Canadian Encyclopedia, 21 Dec. 2017, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/aboriginal-people-eastern-woodlands. Accessed 11 July 2023.

“Eastern Woodlands Indian Tribes.” Students of History, www.studentsofhistory.com/eastern-woodlands-people. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.

Evans, Tony Tekaroniake. “How the Iroquois Confederacy Was Formed.” History.com, 8 Nov. 2021, www.history.com/news/iroquois-confederacy-hiawatha-peacemaker-great-law-of-peace. Accessed 11 July 2023.

“Infinity of Nations.” Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, americanindian.si.edu/exhibitions/infinityofnations/woodlands.html. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.

“Native American Cultures.” History.com, 18 Nov. 2024, www.history.com/topics/native-american-history/native-american-cultures. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.

Ramsden, Peter G., and Zach Parrott. “Haudenosaunee (Iroquois).” The Canadian Encyclopedia, 15 May 2024, www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/iroquois. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.