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Calusa

  

 

Ethnie: CALUSA
Language; Calusa Taino
Family: Northern Maipuran
Stock: Maipuran
Phylum: Arawakan
Macro-Culture: Florida
Speakers Extinct
       The Calusa were a bellicose sedentary maritime hunter/gatherer mound builder culture. They occupied the west coast of Florida from Tampa Bay south including the interior and the Florida Keys. Numerous shipwrecks on Florida west coast provided the Calusa with gold, silver, and Spanish captives. Most of the tribe ultimately removed to Cuba, though some may have joined the Seminole.
Aboriginal Locations (# of Villages)
FL    Coastal and Interior (about 56)
Present Locations
Some may have confederated with the Seminole now in Florida and Oklahoma, while others passed to Cuba
Year History
1513 Visited by de Leon
1516 Visited by Miruelo; visited by Cordova
1521 Battle with de Leon who received mortal wounds and died later in Cuba
1565 St. Augustine founded but attempts to Christianize tribe failed; tribe turned to Havana for trade
1835 First Seminole War
1839 Called "Muspa", attacked camp of Col. Harney, killing 18 of 30 men, either joined Seminole or crossed to Cuba
Year Total FL  Population   Source
1650 3,000   Mooney estimate
1700 3,000   NAHDB calculation
1800 250 NAHDB calculation
1900 0 NAHDB calculation
2000 0   NAHDB calculation 
Other speakers of the same language:
Ais, Guacata, Jeaga, Tequesta
Calusa Sites:
Calusa  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calusa
Calusa Artifacts  http://www.nps.gov/archive/ever/current/artifact.htm
Calusa Authors  http://www.ipl.org/div/natam/bin/browse.pl/t136
Calusa Indian Art, Artifacts, and Anecdotes  http://www.sanybel.com/calusa_indian.htm
Calusa Indian History  http://www.accessgenealogy.com/native/tribes/calusa/calusahist.htm
Calusa Indian Language  http://www.native-languages.org/calusa.htm
Calusa Indian Site reveals ...  http://news.ufl.edu/1998/09/28/storms/
Calusa Indian Wood Carving  http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/photos/native/artifact/0857.htm
Calusa Indians  http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/41/269.html
Calusa Indians  http://www.nps.gov/bicy/calusa.htm
Calusa Indian Site reveals state may face more hurricanes  http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/41/270.html
Calusa Indians on the Islands  http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/41/268.html
Calusa:  The Shell Indians  http://fcit.usf.edu/florida/lessons/calusa/calusa1.htm
Descendants of Calusa May be in Cuba  http://www.indianz.com/News/archive/000666.asp
Escalante History  http://www.hotelescalante.com/history.htm
Fishing Heritage  http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/vertpaleo/aucilla12_1/display99.htm
Florida of the Indians  http://www.floridahistory.org/floridians/indian.htm
Fort Myers Beach:  Cultural and Environmental Learning Center  http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-3011377-action-imgsearch-indian_mound_park_sheboygan-i
Indian Mound Park  http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-3011377-action-imgsearch-indian_mound_park_sheboygan-i
Indians, Spanish and Duck Key  http://www.duckkeyonline.com/duck_key_history/early_history.htm#indian
Lost Fountain  http://ourworld.cs.com/lostfountain/westward.htm
Marco Island  http://www.marcoislandonline.com/history2.htm
Marco Island History  http://www.marcosun.com/marco_history.htm
Mound Key Archeological State Park  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mound_Key_Archeological_State_Park
Native American Tribes of Florida Bibliography  http://dlis.dos.state.fl.us/library/Bibliographies/NatAmerican_bib.cfm
Pine Island  http://bobnebel.tripod.com/pineisland.html
Real Calusa Indian Mound from Island of Bones  http://www.pjparrish.com/inspiration/imagepages/image2.html
Shell People  http://www.funandsun.com/1tocf/inf/nativepeoples/calusa.html
South Florida Archeology and Ethnography  http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/sflarch/

Last updated 10/01/07  Copyright © 2007 by Four Directions Press