Ten Thousand Years of Indian Lifeways in Connecticut

By Roger W. Moel1er, Archaeological Services, Bethlehem, Connecticut

PALEO-INDIAN PERIOD

The first inhabitants of Connecticut, known to archaeologists as Paleo-Indians, arrived more than 10,000 years ago after the melting of the last glacier covering New England. The earliest dated human occupation site in the State is Templeton, located on the banks of the Shepaug River in Washington Depot. Templeton, also known by its site number 6LF21 (in an alphabetical listing of the contiguous 48 states, Connecticut is 6th, LF refers to Litchfield County, and 21 indicates the site was the 21st to be recorded in the County), is unique in many respects. When it was first found in 1977 and carbon-l4 dated to 10,190 years ago, it was the oldest known campsite in New England. It is still the only known deeply-buried, undisturbed, single-occupation, Paleo-Indian campsite having large quantities of tools used for a wide variety of functions.

Virtually all of the artifacts that have been found from this period are made of a very high quality stone such as chert. Although major quarries are known in the Hudson River Valley, Connecticut Paleo-Indians obtained much of their chert from cobbles found adjacent to fast-moving streams. The Stockbridge Marble Formation on the western edge of the state has bands of this lustrous, black stone. Glacial cutting could have broken off large chunks which were later picked up and tumbled by rivers and streams. Few implements were made of local quartz, which tends to shatter unpredictably when flaked. Coarse-grained igneous rocks were used as crude hammerstones.

The Templeton site is important not only for the hideworking, woodworking, plant processing, hunting, boneworking, tool manufacturing, and ceremonial items found, but also because all of these were in use during the same brief occupation. Although the camp covered about 150 square meters, evidence of the entire manufacturing process—from the water-polished chert cobbles to the smallest flakes removed to sharpen the tool—was found. Due to flaws in the stone or in their techniques, the flintknappers broke many artifacts prior to completion.

Since all of the debris from the entire manufacturing process can be seen associated with the worn-out, discarded tools, it is obvious that very little disturbance has occurred. Had the camp been there for a long time or had many inhabitants, tools and manufacturing debris would have been scattered. Fewer than twenty people stayed here for less than a month before moving, never to return to the same camp. This is good news for the archaeologist who wants to see exactly how people lived.

Since cross sections of each tree species have unique traits, pieces of preserved wood or charcoal can be identified. Samples from this occupation zone were identified as red oak and either juniper or white cedar. The presence of deciduous trees implies a more diverse ground cover and animal population than would be present in a tundra or taiga.

The paucity of Paleo-Indian sites and artifacts in the state suggests that the total Indian population was very small and that short-term camps were the rule. Since one locale could not serve all of their needs for a full year, they had to move frequently to take advantage of seasonally abundant resources.

Although hunting with spears and javelins to obtain meat, hides, bones, and sinew was undoubtedly very important, fishing and gathering of wild plants also took place. While fish bones have been found, fishing implements have not.

Paleo-Indian sites are known to have been in major river and stream valleys, in rockshelters, and on the margins of what were once glacial lakes.  It is probable that Paleo-Indians also lived along the shore, but coastal submergence, erosion, and wave action make finding still-preserved camps unlikely.

ARCHAIC PERIOD

As the environment changed, so did the lives, tools, and culture of the Indians. The next period from 9,000 to 3,000 years ago is known as the Archaic. So much more is known of the people living at this time because of technological advances, larger population, greater number of known sites, a greater variety and quantity of artifacts, and so many fewer years for decay to destroy the record of what happened.

While the Paleo-Indian environment was one dominated by evergreens with oases of deciduous trees, the spread of oak, hickory, and other now common deciduous trees made more areas habitable for large numbers of people. Because the food supply is more diverse, the likelihood for survival is greater for people living in deciduous forests.

The gradual advent of a new environment populated by different plant and animal species necessitated changes in the people's culture. The most obvious change was in the development of tools for felling and limbing trees, for making dugout canoes from large logs, and for roughly shaping logs. One also discerns development in fishing implements for netting, hooking, spearing, and trapping large numbers of fish.

Specialized food preparation implements were used to grind seeds and nuts. A hammerstone could have been used to break bones to extract marrow as well as to break rocks for making tools. Steatite (soapstone) bowls came into use late in the Archaic. Because such bowls conduct heat very well, they can be used for cooking directly over a fire.

In the Archaic, abundant evidence is found for the actual utilization of wild plant seeds, roots, bark, shoots, stalks, berries, and nuts. Many of the common plant species growing in gardens today as "weeds" were used by the Indians for food, (amaranth, purslane); medicine (yarrow); smoking (smartweed); beverage (goldenrod); dye (pokeweed); and raw materials for crafts (milkweed).

While it is important to know the various uses that the people had for different natural materials, archaeologists can also determine the seasons of the year a camp was occupied by the carbonized seeds in refuse pits and hearths. Many Archaic sites were seasonally occupied in a manner similar to that of the Paleo-Indian Period. But since the Archaic sites are larger and have far more implements, these sites obviously were inhabited by more people at a single time. People frequently returned to previously inhabited camps.

Archaic ceremonialism is better known from many human burials containing grave goods for use in the afterlife. The body was placed into a carefully prepared pit and covered with red ochre (fired hematite). The stone is a brilliant red and simulates blood. Frequently stone projectile points, blades, and stone pots included in the grave were broken intentionally to release their spirit to accompany the soul of the deceased.

While all of the Paleo-Indian artifacts known from Connecticut are made of stone, Archaic implements are found of stone, bone, carbonized fibers, shell, antler, and copper. Most of the raw materials were obtained locally, but copper used for knives and ornaments was received in trade from people as far away as the Great Lakes area.

The best preserved materials are from coastal sites having large quantities of clam and oyster shells. The inland sites are found near major rivers, small streams, lakes, and in uplands near soapstone outcroppings. Almost any plowed field will yield artifacts diagnostic of this period.

WOODLAND PERIOD

The Woodland Period from 3,000 to 400 years ago is marked by the presence of ground and polished stone tools, villages, ceramics, domesticated plants and animals, and the bow and arrow. Of these traits, domestication and villages occur very late, It is an interesting paradox that archaeologists should have so little direct knowledge of the most recent prehistoric period in Connecticut. Because the Woodland villages were located in the places first cleared and settled by Europeans, these villages were destroyed without a trace before being studied and recorded.

The camps that provided the fish, game, wild plants, and other resources for the Woodland villages look so much like their Archaic counterparts that one can scarcely tell the difference. A few good sites need to be found and professionally excavated to learn what the people were really like before the Europeans arrived. Shreds and patches are known from many locations.

The use of domesticated plants occurred very late in New England because of the short growing season. The Indians had learned to exist upon the wild foods very comfortably and did not need horticulture. To depend upon new plants for one's very existence was to court disaster. Corn, beans, and squash, however, were grown to supplement their diet and tobacco was cultivated for rituals.

The presence of settled villages at the time the Europeans arrived can be documented by records of traders and settlers. Unfortunately, the records seldom include detailed descriptions of how or even exactly where the Indians lived. Because the Indians had no written language and were overwhelmed so quickly by the Europeans in Connecticut, the actual social, political, economic, and religious life of the people is known only vaguely and is strongly biased by unsympathetic European observers.

HISTORIC PERIOD

It is a popular misconception that Connecticut Indian culture included long, flowing headdresses, horses, and tepees before the Europeans arrived in the early 1600s. These are traits of Western Indians. The colonists were greeted by people who paddled to meet them in canoes; showed them how to grow corn, beans, squash, and tobacco; played lacrosse; and knew how to survive in the forest. Had the colonists not adopted so many of the Indian ways, they could not have long survived.

Warfare among Connecticut Indians before European contact cannot be documented archaeologically. Warfare, however, was an inevitable result of the social disruption caused by European contact. Some Indians desired such exotic commodities as glass, brass, fine woven cloth, and other manufactured items and adopted the customs of the newcomers. The Europeans wanted land, furs, and freedom to expand into Indian territory regardless of the philosophy of the natives who had aided them so much. Diseases such as smallpox decimated an Indian population which had no natural immunity. All of these factors of social disruption and fear combined to make war inevitable. The only Indian alternatives to war were to flee or to become Europeanized. It should not be surprising that there was little left of the Woodland Indian culture in Connecticut within a relatively few years after European contact.

Although there are currently five reservations in Connecticut occupied by 19 families, most of the more than 5,000 people with Indian ancestry in the state do not live on them. One way in which Indians in contemporary Connecticut attempt to maintain a link with their heritage is to practice native crafts such as basketry, finger-weaving, beadwork, carving, and ceramics using natural materials and authentic techniques. Another way is by attending social gatherings, participating in traditional ceremonies, and dressing in native-style clothing.

SUMMARY

Archaeologists and historians have documented more than 10,000 years of Indian culture in Connecticut, but there is still much that is not known. One does not know, for example, how many Indians lived in Connecticut. Native population estimates have ranged from the thousands to ten of thousands, but there is no accurate way to judge. Population probably steadily increased through the millenia as people became more adept at survival and as the climate moderated. Nearly every possible econiche which can support life has evidence of Indian exploitation at one time or another.

No one knows precisely the religion, political organization, marriage practices, artistic expression, or even daily social habits of the Indians of the Paleo-Indian, Archaic, and Woodland periods. Their culture was fragmented so rapidly with the coming of the Europeans that virtually no record is left of the intangibles. Since archaeologists can only deal with tangible objects, they need to find, excavate, analyze, and interpret stones, seeds, bones, and features to learn what the Indians of Connecticut did during the past 10,000 years. Even with an energetic archaeological effort, much will never be known.

For Further Reading

Kavasch, Barrie. Native Harvests: Recipes and Botanicals of the American Indians. New York, 1979.

Kupperman, Karen Ordahl. Settling With the Indians: The Meeting of the English and Indian Cultures in America, 1580-1640. Totowa, New Jersey, 1980.

Moeller, Roger W. Guide to Indian Artifacts of the Northeast. Blaine, Washington, 1984.

Moeller, Roger W. 6LF21: A Paleo-Indian Site in Western Connecticut. Washington, Connecticut, 1980.

Sullivan, George. Discover Archaeology. New York, 1980.

Swigart, Edmund K. The Prehistory of the Indians of Western Connecticut. Washington, Connecticut, 1974.

Wilbur, C. Keith. The New England Indians: An Illustrated Source Book of Authentic Details About Everyday Indian Life. Chester, Connecticut, 1978.

* Entry under revision.