Mocama facts for kids

The Mocama were a group of Native American people. They lived along the coasts of what is now northern Florida and southeastern Georgia. The Mocama were part of the larger Timucua people. They spoke a special way of talking, called a dialect, known as Mocama. This dialect is the one we know most about from the Timucua language.

Their land stretched from the Altamaha River in Georgia down to south of St. Augustine, Florida. This area included the Sea Islands and the waterways inland. It also covered the mouth of the St. Johns River in today's Jacksonville. When Europeans first arrived, the Mocama had two main groups, called chiefdoms. These were the Saturiwa and the Tacatacuru. Each chiefdom was led by a chief and controlled many villages.

The Spanish later called this whole area the Mocama Province. They built a system of churches and settlements, known as missions, there. Sadly, many Mocama people died in the 1600s. This was due to diseases and fights with other Native American tribes. They also fought with the English settlers from the north. The few Mocama who survived moved to St. Augustine. In 1763, about 89 Native Americans, including Mocama and Guale survivors, moved with the Spanish to Cuba. This happened after the land was given to Great Britain.

Mocama History: Early Life and Culture

People have lived in the Mocama area for a very long time. We know this from archaeological digs, which show humans were there at least 2500 BC. This area has some of the oldest pottery ever found in the United States. A team from the University of North Florida found it on Black Hammock Island in Jacksonville, Florida. They also found newer items from the time of the Mocama chiefdoms. Some items even show that a Spanish mission was once there.

Around the year AD 1000, the people in this region traded with distant groups. They traded with large centers of the Mississippian culture. These places included Cahokia in today's Illinois and Macon, Georgia. Before and during the time Europeans arrived, people in this area spoke the Mocama dialect. They also shared similar ways of life. For example, they all used a special kind of pottery called San Pedro pottery.

The Mocama Language Dialect

The Mocama dialect is the best-known way of speaking the Timucua language. Some experts, like Jerald T. Milanich, think another dialect called Agua Salada was the same as Mocama. Agua Salada was spoken on a part of the Florida coast south of the Mocama area. However, other information suggests Agua Salada was different. It might have been more like western dialects, such as Potano, than Mocama.

Mocama Chiefdoms and European Contact

French explorers, who were Huguenots, first came to Florida in 1562. They wrote about two main Mocama chiefdoms at that time. These were the Saturiwa and the Tacatacuru. The Saturiwa's main village was on Fort George Island. They were friendly with the French. They helped the French build Fort Caroline in their territory.

The Saturiwa People

The French leader, René Goulaine de Laudonnière, wrote about the Saturiwa chief. This chief was also named Saturiwa. He ruled over thirty villages and their chiefs. Ten of these chiefs were his "brothers." These villages were located near the mouth of the St. Johns River. They were also found along nearby inland waterways. Other groups who spoke Mocama lived along the coast to the north. Their land stretched from Amelia Island in Florida to St. Simons Island in Georgia.

The Tacatacuru People

The Tacatacuru chiefdom was centered on Cumberland Island. It also controlled villages along the coast.

When the Spanish destroyed the French fort, Fort Caroline, both the Saturiwa and Tacatacuru helped the French. They were against the Spanish at first. But eventually, they made peace. Since Mocama was spoken across the area, the Spanish called it the Mocama Province. They included it in their mission system.

Spanish Missions in Mocama Province

Mocama Province was one of four main areas where the Spanish built missions. The others were the Timucua Province to the west, the Guale Province, and the Apalachee Province. The Spanish built three major missions in the Mocama Province:

• San Juan del Puerto at Saturiwa on Fort George Island.
• San Pedro de Mocama at Tacatacuru on Cumberland Island.
• Santa Maria de Sena, located between the other two, on Amelia Island.

Decline of the Mocama People

The Mocama people faced huge population losses in the 1600s. This was due to serious diseases and wars. They fought with Native American tribes from the north. They also fought with the English from South Carolina. Because of this, the Mocama groups broke apart. After this time, the Spanish and later settlers used "Mocama" to refer to the land where these chiefdoms had once been.

Between 1675 and 1680, the Westo tribe attacked the Spanish missions in Mocama. The Westo were supported by the English colonies of South Carolina and Virginia. English-backed pirates also attacked. These attacks destroyed the Spanish mission system in Mocama.

The few remaining "refugee missions" were destroyed in 1702. This happened when South Carolina invaded Spanish Florida during Queen Anne's War. By 1733, the Mocama and Guale chiefdoms were too small and weak to fight back. This allowed James Oglethorpe to start the English colony of Georgia.

The Spanish had also set up a mission province for the Guale people. This was just north of Mocama, on the Georgia coast. Its history was much like Mocama's, and it met the same end. The remaining people from both chiefdoms moved south to St. Augustine. In 1763, their descendants were among the 89 Native Americans who went to Cuba with the Spanish.