Calusa facts for kids
Approximate Calusa core area (red) and political domain (blue)
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| Total population | |
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| Extinct as a tribe | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| United States (Florida) | |
| Languages | |
| Calusa | |
| Religion | |
| Native |
The Calusa were a Native American people who lived on the southwest coast of Florida. Their society grew from older cultures in the Everglades area. People had lived in this region for thousands of years before the Calusa.
When Europeans first arrived in the 1500s and 1600s, the Calusa were part of the Caloosahatchee culture. They built a complex society based on fishing in the coastal waters, not on farming. The Calusa controlled an area from Charlotte Harbor to Cape Sable. This included what is now Charlotte, Lee, and Collier counties. Sometimes, their influence even reached the Florida Keys. They had the largest population in South Florida. Experts guess their population was around 10,000 or more when Europeans first came.
The Calusa also had power over other tribes in southern Florida. These included the Mayaimi near Lake Okeechobee, and the Tequesta and Jaega tribes on Florida's southeast coast. Their influence might have also reached the Ais tribe on the central east coast of Florida.
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Understanding the Calusa Name
Early Spanish and French explorers called the tribe, its main town, and its chief names like Calos or Carlos. Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda, a Spaniard held captive by the Calusa in the 1500s, said that Calusa meant "fierce people" in their language. Later, in the 1800s, Anglo-Americans started using the name Calusa. This name comes from the Creek and Mikasuki languages. These are the languages of today's Seminole and Miccosukee nations. The name refers to the people who lived near the Caloosahatchee River.
A Jesuit missionary named Juan Rogel visited the Calusa in the late 1560s. He noted the chief's name as Carlos. But he also wrote that the kingdom's name was Escampaba. Rogel said the chief's real name was Caalus, and the Spanish changed it to Carlos.
Where Did the Calusa Come From?
People first arrived in Florida at least 12,000 years ago. By 5000 BC, groups began living in villages near wet areas. They often stayed in the same good spots for many generations. Florida's climate became like it is today around 3000 BC. The sea level also rose to its current height. People lived in both fresh and saltwater wetlands. They ate a lot of shellfish, which created large shell middens (piles of shells) during this time. Many lived in big villages with special earthwork mounds, like those at Horr's Island. People in Florida started making pottery around 2000 BC.
Around 500 BC, the Archaic culture, which was similar across Florida, began to change. It split into different regional cultures. Some old tools from the Archaic period have been found in the Calusa area. This includes one site from before 5000 BC. There is proof that people used the Charlotte Harbor water resources a lot before 3500 BC. Simple pottery from the early Glades culture appeared around 500 BC.
Around AD 500, a new type of pottery developed in the region. This marked the start of the Caloosahatchee culture. This culture lasted until about 1750 and included the historic Calusa people. By 880, a complex society had grown with many people living close together. Later periods of the Caloosahatchee culture are known by pottery from other traditions.
The Caloosahatchee culture lived along Florida's west coast. Their area stretched from Estero Bay to Charlotte Harbor. It went inland about halfway to Lake Okeechobee. This covers what are now Charlotte and Lee counties. When Europeans first arrived, this Caloosahatchee region was the heart of the Calusa lands. Fishing tools changed slowly over time, showing that the same people likely lived there continuously.
Between 500 and 1000 AD, the common sand-tempered pottery was replaced. New pottery, called "Belle Glade Plain," became popular. This pottery was made with clay containing tiny pieces from freshwater sponges. It first appeared inland around Lake Okeechobee. This change might mean people moved from inland areas to the coast. Or it could show trade and cultural influences. After this, the pottery style changed very little. The Calusa were descendants of people who had lived in the area for at least 1,000 years before Europeans arrived, and possibly much longer.
How the Calusa Society Worked
The Calusa had a society with different levels, like "commoners" and "nobles" as the Spanish called them. There is no proof that the Calusa had slavery. But studies show they might have used captives for work or even for special ceremonies. A few leaders guided the tribe. Most Calusa people worked to support these leaders.
The main leaders included the paramount chief, who was like a king. There was also a military leader and a chief priest. The Calusa capital, where the rulers lived, was Mound Key. This is near present-day Estero, Florida. In 1566, someone saw the "king's house" on Mound Key. It was big enough for 2,000 people to stand inside. In 1564, a Spanish source said the priest was the chief's father. The military leader was his cousin.
The Spanish wrote about four times when a new paramount chief took over. They recorded most names in Spanish. Senquene became chief after his brother. Then his son Carlos became chief. Carlos was followed by his cousin (and brother-in-law) Felipe. Felipe was then followed by another cousin of Carlos, Pedro. The Spanish reported that the chief was expected to marry his sister. But modern experts think this might have been a misunderstanding. It might have meant marrying a "clan-sister." The chief also married women from towns he controlled and from allied tribes. This was a way to make alliances stronger. For example, Carlos offered his sister Antonia in marriage to the Spanish explorer Pedro Menéndez de Avilés in 1566.
Calusa Daily Life and Tools
What Did the Calusa Eat?
The Calusa living near the coast and estuaries mostly ate fish. They especially liked pinfish, pigfish, and hardhead catfish. They also ate larger bony fish, sharks, rays, shellfish, crabs, ducks, sea turtles, land turtles, and other land animals. When Pedro Menéndez de Avilés visited in 1566, the Calusa only served fish and oysters to the Spanish.
At one coastal site, the Wightman site on Sanibel Island, scientists studied animal remains. They found that over 93 percent of the food energy came from fish and shellfish. Less than 6 percent came from mammals, and less than 1 percent from birds and reptiles. But at an inland site called Platt Island, mammals (mostly deer) provided over 60 percent of the meat energy. Fish gave just under 20 percent.
Some people thought the Calusa grew maize (corn) and Zamia integrifolia (coontie). But there is little proof. The Calusa turned down farming tools from the Spanish, saying they didn't need them. The Calusa gathered many wild berries, fruits, nuts, and roots. Digs on Sanibel Island and Useppa Island show they ate wild plants like cabbage palm, prickly pear, hog plum, acorns, wild papaya, and chili peppers. They also grew a type of gourd (Cucurbita pepo) and the bottle gourd 2,000 years ago. These were used for net floats and dippers.
Tools and Crafts
The Calusa caught most of their fish with nets. They wove nets with different mesh sizes for different seasons and fish. They made bone and shell tools to help weave nets. Grown gourds were used as net floats. Sinkers and net weights were made from mollusk shells. The Calusa also used spears, hooks, and throat gorges to catch fish. Well-preserved nets, floats, and hooks were found at Key Marco.
They used mollusk shells and wood for hammering and pounding tools. Shells and shark teeth were used for grating, cutting, carving, and engraving. The Calusa wove nets from palm-fiber cords. Cords were also made from Cabbage Palm leaves, saw palmetto trunks, Spanish moss, false sisal, and the bark of cypress and willow trees.
The Calusa also built fish traps, weirs, and fish corrals from wood and cord. Wooden items found include bowls, ear ornaments, masks, plaques, and a finely carved deer head. These objects were often painted. No Calusa dugout canoes have been found yet. But it's thought they made them from cypress or pine, like other Florida tribes. They would burn the middle of the log and then chop out the charred wood with strong shell tools to shape the boat.
Calusa Homes
The Calusa lived in large, shared houses that were two stories high. When Pedro Menéndez de Avilés visited the capital in 1566, he said the chief's house was big enough for 2,000 people without being crowded. This means it also served as a meeting hall. When the chief formally met Menéndez, the chief sat on a raised seat. Around him were 500 of his main men. His sister-wife sat on another raised seat with 500 women around her. The chief's house had two big windows, suggesting it had walls. In 1697, five friars staying in the chief's house complained that the roof let in rain, sun, and dew. The chief's house, and maybe other houses at Calos, were built on top of earthen mounds. In 1697, the Spanish noted 16 houses in the Calusa capital of Calos, which had 1,000 residents.
Clothing and Decorations
The Calusa wore very little clothing. Men wore a deerskin breechcloth. There is less information about what Calusa women wore. For most tribes in Florida, women wore skirts made of what is now called Spanish moss. The Calusa painted their bodies often. But there are no reports of them having tattoos. Men wore their hair long. Missionaries knew that asking a Calusa man to cut his hair when becoming a Christian would be a big sacrifice.
Not much was written about Calusa jewelry or other decorations. During Menéndez de Avilés's visit in 1566, the chief's wife wore pearls, precious stones, and gold beads around her neck. The chief's heir wore a gold ornament on his forehead and beads on his legs.
Ceremonial masks have been found and described by early Spanish visitors. Some masks had moving parts with strings and hinges. This allowed a person to change the mask's look while wearing it.
Calusa Beliefs
The Calusa believed that three powerful spirits ruled the world. They also thought people had three souls. After death, souls would move into animals. The most powerful spirit ruled the physical world. The second most powerful ruled human governments. The last spirit helped in wars, deciding who would win.
The Calusa believed the three souls were the pupil of a person's eye, their shadow, and their reflection. The soul in the eye's pupil stayed with the body after death. The Calusa would talk to that soul at the graveside. The other two souls left the body after death and entered an animal. If a Calusa killed such an animal, the soul would move to a lesser animal and eventually disappear.
Calusa ceremonies included parades of priests and singing women. The priests wore carved masks. These masks were sometimes hung on temple walls. Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda described "sorcerers in the shape of the devil, with some horns on their heads." These sorcerers would run through the town yelling like animals for four months at a time.
The Calusa held strong to their beliefs, even when the Spanish tried to convert them to Catholicism. The "nobles" did not want to convert. Their power and position were closely tied to their belief system. They were seen as links between the gods and the people. Converting would have taken away their authority. The Calusa resisted Spanish attempts to take their land and change their religion for almost 200 years. After many died from new diseases, the tribe was destroyed by Creek and Yamasee raiders in the early 1700s.
The Calusa Language
| Calusa | |
|---|---|
| Region | Florida |
| Extinct | ca. 1800 |
| Language family |
unclassified
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We know very little about the Calusa language. Only about a dozen words with translations and 50 or 60 place names are known. Evidence suggests that all the people in southern Florida and the Tampa Bay area, including the Tequesta, Mayaimi, and Tocobaga, spoke similar dialects of one language. This language was different from those spoken by the Apalachee, Timucua, Mayaca, and Ais people in central and northern Florida. Some experts think the Calusa language might be related to the Tunica language from the lower Mississippi River Valley.
Calusa Encounters with Europeans
The first recorded meeting between the Calusa and Europeans was in 1513. Juan Ponce de León landed on Florida's west coast in May. This was likely near the mouth of the Caloosahatchee River. However, the Calusa already knew about the Spanish. They had taken in Native American refugees who escaped Spanish rule in Cuba. The Spanish repaired one of their ships, and the Calusa offered to trade. After ten days, a man who spoke Spanish asked Ponce de León to wait for the Calusa chief. Soon, 20 war canoes attacked the Spanish. The Spanish fought them off, killing or capturing some Calusa. The next day, 80 "shielded" canoes attacked the Spanish ships, but the battle was not decisive. The Spanish then left and went back to Puerto Rico.
In 1517, Francisco Hernández de Córdoba landed in southwest Florida. He was on his way back from discovering the Yucatán. The Calusa also attacked him. In 1521, Ponce de León returned to southwest Florida to start a colony. But the Calusa drove the Spanish out, and Ponce de León was badly wounded and died.
The Pánfilo de Narváez expedition in 1528 and the Hernando de Soto expedition in 1539 both landed near Tampa Bay. This was north of the Calusa lands. Dominican missionaries reached the Calusa area in 1549. But they left because the tribe was hostile. Goods and survivors from Spanish shipwrecks reached the Calusa in the 1540s and 1550s. The best information about the Calusa comes from the Memoir of Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda. He was one of these survivors. Fontaneda was shipwrecked on Florida's east coast, probably in the Florida Keys, around 1550. He was thirteen years old. Many others survived the shipwreck, but only Fontaneda was spared by the tribe. Warriors killed all the adult men. Fontaneda lived with different tribes in southern Florida for seventeen years. He was found by the Menendez de Avilés expedition.
In 1566, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés, who founded St. Augustine, met the Calusa. He made a difficult peace with their leader, Caluus, or Carlos. Menéndez married Carlos' sister, who was baptized as Doña Antonia. Menéndez left soldiers and a Jesuit mission, San Antón de Carlos, at the Calusa capital. But fighting broke out. The Spanish soldiers killed Carlos, his successor Felipe, and several "nobles." The Spanish then left their fort and mission in 1569.
For over a hundred years after this, there was little contact between the Spanish and Calusa. In 1614, Spanish forces attacked the Calusa. This was part of a war between the Calusa and Spanish-allied tribes near Tampa Bay. In 1680, a Spanish group tried to rescue some captives held by the Calusa. But they had to turn back. Neighboring tribes were afraid of the Calusa and refused to guide the Spanish. In 1697, Franciscan missionaries started a mission to the Calusa. But they left after only a few months.
After war started between Spain and England in 1702, slave raids began. Uchise Creek and Yamasee Indians, allied with the Province of Carolina, raided far down the Florida peninsula. The Carolina colonists gave firearms to the Creek and Yamasee. But the Calusa, who had stayed away from Europeans, had no guns. Many Calusa died from new diseases brought by Europeans. They also suffered from the slave raids. The remaining Calusa moved south and east.
In 1711, the Spanish helped 270 Native Americans, including many Calusa, move from the Florida Keys to Cuba. Almost 200 of them soon died in Cuba. About 1,700 were left behind. In 1743, the Spanish started a mission on Biscayne Bay. This was for survivors from several tribes, including the Calusa, who had gathered there and in the Florida Keys. The mission closed after only a few months.
When Spain gave Florida to the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1763, the Spanish moved the last remaining tribes of south Florida to Cuba. A few Calusa individuals might have stayed behind and joined the Seminole. But there is no proof of this. Cuban fishing camps operated along the southwest Florida coast from the 1700s to the mid-1800s. Some "Spanish Indians" (often with mixed Spanish and Native American heritage) who worked at these camps might have been descendants of the Calusa.
See also
In Spanish: Calusa para niños
