The Calusa Indians: First Civilization of South West Florida
The Calusa Indians
Did you know that the Calusa Indians were the first civilization of southwest Florida? They originated on Mound Key, an island in Estero Bay, just 80 miles south of St. Petersburg, FL. The Calusas lived on Mound Key from 800 A.D. till the end of the 17th Century. The view points from the two texts; William Bradford’s History of Plymouth Plantation and John Smiths’ The General History of Virginia; proclaim the Calusa Indians as “savages”. Although after reading a couple of texts including William Bradford’s Plymouth Plantation, John Smith, and Water World the Calusa Indians reveal more of a highly advanced society. Therefore, it is true that early settlers viewed Indians as savages; however, archaeological studies of civilizations like the Calusa Indians reveal a highly advanced society. William Bradford graphically describes the Calusa Indians as “savages”. Bradford writes about what him and his fellow pilgrims see when they are forced to flee to Holland in 1608 on the Mayflower. Holland was an alien land to these pilgrims at that time. Their main goal was to arrive in the new world. William later expresses in vivid detail the conditions of his men in “an unknown world”called Cape Cod. “…they had now no friends to welcome them nor inns to entertain or refresh their weatherbeaten bodies; no houses or much less towns to repair to, to seek for succour.”(Bradford, 1620) William Bradford constantly calls the Indians “savage barbarians”, who were “readier to fill their sides of arrows than otherwise”. The Pilgrims could see nothing but, as Bradford says, “Hideous and desolate wilderness, full of wild beasts and wild men”.
In John Smiths’ The General History of Virginia, he illustrates his firsthand account of what he experienced with the Native American group the Calusas, in the New World. He called them a “backwards” tribe. He portrayed the Calusas as “barbaric” and “dangerous”. In Smith’s observation of the Indians in the New World, he saw
Did you know that the Calusa Indians were the first civilization of southwest Florida? They originated on Mound Key, an island in Estero Bay, just 80 miles south of St. Petersburg, FL. The Calusas lived on Mound Key from 800 A.D. till the end of the 17th Century. The view points from the two texts; William Bradford’s History of Plymouth Plantation and John Smiths’ The General History of Virginia; proclaim the Calusa Indians as “savages”. Although after reading a couple of texts including William Bradford’s Plymouth Plantation, John Smith, and Water World the Calusa Indians reveal more of a highly advanced society. Therefore, it is true that early settlers viewed Indians as savages; however, archaeological studies of civilizations like the Calusa Indians reveal a highly advanced society. William Bradford graphically describes the Calusa Indians as “savages”. Bradford writes about what him and his fellow pilgrims see when they are forced to flee to Holland in 1608 on the Mayflower. Holland was an alien land to these pilgrims at that time. Their main goal was to arrive in the new world. William later expresses in vivid detail the conditions of his men in “an unknown world”called Cape Cod. “…they had now no friends to welcome them nor inns to entertain or refresh their weatherbeaten bodies; no houses or much less towns to repair to, to seek for succour.”(Bradford, 1620) William Bradford constantly calls the Indians “savage barbarians”, who were “readier to fill their sides of arrows than otherwise”. The Pilgrims could see nothing but, as Bradford says, “Hideous and desolate wilderness, full of wild beasts and wild men”.
In John Smiths’ The General History of Virginia, he illustrates his firsthand account of what he experienced with the Native American group the Calusas, in the New World. He called them a “backwards” tribe. He portrayed the Calusas as “barbaric” and “dangerous”. In Smith’s observation of the Indians in the New World, he saw