Native Americans in Texas - Research Paper Example

NATIVE AMERICANS IN TEXAS Introduction Native Americans in Texas are largely comprised of diverse Indian communities. They established themselves in semi-permanent and permanent settlements, depending on the fending approaches used. The natives mainly comprised of hunters, fishermen and gatherers and therefore, lived in family and tribal groups with common practices, though they mixed up with different communities across different centuries.1 These tribal mixtures involved both Indian communities, as well as, immigrants such as the Europeans. The primitive ancestors are believed to have occupied Texas over thirty five thousand years ago. It is believed that these tribes came from Asia, thus crossing borders to occupy the Northern parts of America. The main tribes which occupied this area are the Apache and the Comanche people. Other than these two tribes, Texas also held many other different communities. This paper seeks to discuss the Native American in Texas and their diverse ways of live, as well as their, characteristics. Characteristics of Native American in Texas The most ancient Texan groups comprised of nomadic activity as a main culturalactivity. According Elonera’s records made on Native Americans in Texas, about ten thousand years ago, these groups comprised of few people per holding who practiced hunting activities as a source of food. These people held the Plainviewand Folsom cultures in the present New Mexico regions.2 This is according to studies made in the area. The findings reported weapon points which had knives and scrappers as well as fire places. Some of their characteristics include the art of hunting in groups by the use of weapons such as spears during hunting. These ancient spear heads and weapons were made from carved stone. The hunters used large blocks of stone or flint tomake cores, whereby they selected large pieces of blades to make their spear tips. This art of chipping stone was common amongst the Clovis and Folsom hunters. The tips made by each group are named according to the group which made them, such as Clovis points. As found in most ancient groups, the males did the hunting tasks while the women fended their young ones. The women also did other tasks such as gathering and collecting food and sometimes the minor wild animals.3 They also assisted in preparation of hide and skin for other uses as well as prepare and cook food for their families. These groups practicedthese hunting and gathering activities in well-organized schedules.However,this highly depended on the seasonal trends during the year. These groups comprised of archaens who lived and dominated Texasarea before 1000 AD. These practices changed by the mixing of this group to other Indian groups who had different culturalpractices. By the early sixteenth century, thesegroups merged to form diverse bands of groups living together. This occurred although they did not speak in similar languages nor have similar living practices. These groups mainly comprised of the farmers as well as the hunters and gatherers found at the coast and plains. The plain hunters, which comprised of the Comanche people mainly, hunted the buffalo. However, they later adopted the horse culture after horses were introduced to them. This is because the horses’ assistedthem in making movements during their game quest in diverse locations. Later, these movements yielded into economicactivities. This mainly occurred in the Texas areas, as well as, in Oklahoma in the southern plains. This was attributable to the fact that the plains provided a favourable environment to conduct their cultural activities. The buffalos inhabited this area in large numbers and prompted the hunters to develop horse back hunting skills. Another tribeknown as the Kiowa’salso practiced buffalo hunting. They belongedto the large tribe of Apache, and practiced a nomadic lifestyle. As a result of buffalo hunting, this group of people made weapons and household goods from buffalo material. Buffalo skin was also used to make clothing items and ornaments for their family members. This group highly disregarded fish meat or any other meat from under water. They also refused to consume met from flying animals such as the prairie chicken, whom they considered to be cowards. This was because they considered themselves as mighty men when they conquered the nature around them. They considered every living creaturelocated around them to have a spiritual significance. These groups also consulted divine beings through the assistance of nature which comprised of both living and non-living beings4. Evidence of this phenomenon is derived from some ancient paintings and carvings found on rock surfaces. Some taboos formed in thecommunity restricted the members from consuming bear meat. This may have been influenced by the fact that these native tribes held close knit family setups. It is believed that defiling the tribe’s taboos and other laws led to people losing theirdignity as well as being rendered as outcasts. In most of these groups, property ownership was done communally, rather than individually.5 This promoted communal ties, such as doing hunting practices together. Communal leadership in this tribes occurred, where elderly men ruled the communities. One of the ancient tribes in the area called Texas nowadays was called Caddo’s. They lived in the east and northern east parts of the nation. This is around the Fox River in Wisconsin before the seventeenth century. The area is near a dense deciduous forest with valleys. Their main economic activity was agriculture.In the eleventh century, those who lived in the Piney woods suffered a great drought .This group lived in permanently build structures so as to allow them practice farming effectively. In the fourteenth century, the Teyas, a sub group of Caddo’s, destroyed several villages of the Pueblo community in the Glisten basin. They practiced the art of making paintings as well as tattoos, especially in theeye region. This is because historical records emphasizethatthe Caddo people practiced artistic skills through earth work. This indicates that they numerous and well organized groups, thus prompted their wide movement. Other events prove that they were good archers as proven during the hunting of game. The name Texas emanated from a sect in this tribe, from the name Tejas, which meant a friend. This later became the name used for the Province, and currently a state. This tribe later moved to Missouri in the seventeenth century, following the war in 18126. They later fled to areas in Mexico and mixed with other tribes found along river Sabine. These areas are relatively drier when compared to the original homeland. As a result, they engaged in battle with Texas rangers, which led to the capture of their women and children by other Indians. The native group religious beliefs focused on a supreme being in the sky. The religious leaders included priests, known as the Xinesi. The priest communicated with spirits and resided in the community temple. In the sixteenth century, the Caddo encountered the Europeans as they made an expedition in their territories. This caused the creation of violence as the natives took it as a trespass. During this time, this tribe comprised of three sects namely the Kadohadasho, the hasanii and theNatchitoches. These groups affiliated with other minor tribes loosely. Their interaction with the missionaries created further disruptions due to emergence of a smallpox epidemic. Unfortunately, the epidemiclargely affected the community members as they had no immunity against the unfamiliar illness. The Caddo faced further displacements from another migrating group known as the Osage as they fled warfare activities. The Caddo community then secured a place amidst the Spanish through negotiations. Later, they also lived amidst the French and other Americans. In the early nineteenth century, the federal government managed to relocate them to Mexico. This area had become corrupted of its initial state due to massive immigration made by the Europeans.7 However, they declared Texas and Mexico as independent republicans. This caused the Caddo to be relocated to other Indian territories on the western side of Mississippi. The Apache tribes mainly settled in the Western side of Texas. The Mescalero’s and Lipan’s are one of the significant sects of the Native Americans in Texas. They carried out farming activities as well as hunted buffalos for meat. Their farming crops included staple food like maize and beans and in other areas watermelons and pumpkins also supplemented their diet. This group in particular became attached to Texas in the late seventeenth Century. This group of people learnt to ride horses earlier than other Indian tribes. The Lipan’s lived near Spanish territories in the eighteenth century. This native tribe had organized governing systems within them led by chiefs. The Spanish and the Lipan’s lived peacefully until when the Spanish took over leadership in Texas. The Lipan Apaches then carried out raiding activities to protest against the Spanish rule. This was because the Spanish group made attempts to colonize the region in Texas. They formulated strategies of alcohol sale to mix with this tribe.8 However, the Lipan community merged efforts with the Comanche tribe against the Spanish. However, the Comanche’s great aggression led to the displacement of the Lipan tribe in the early nineteenth century. Another group of natives was known as the karankwa’s, who occupied the area aground the Gulf Coast. This area is in present age known as Galveston and is adjacent to Corpus Cristi. These group of people mostly practiced fishing along this coast and more primitive as compared to the Caddo’s. They are known to survive in harsh environments, where hunting was done communally. The men conducted fishing activities in both shallow and deep waters through the use of lances, bows and arrows. The women as well as elderly persons assisted in harvesting crabs and oysters. This mainly occurred during the winter since these crustaceans are not safe for consumption during the summer season. The crustaceans also make an annual migration during this period, sometimes forcing this tribe to migrate to plain land. Escaping tropical storms along the coast as well as hurricanes also pushed the Karankas inward. This made them to become a little organized in terms of cultural practices. The people of this community heavily pierced and tattooed themselves. They also wore ornaments made from collected shells in the coastal regions. Theyalso used alligatoroil to grease themselves so as to prevent mosquito bites. This group could be easily identified since each man pierced his lowerlip as well as one nipple. Other cultural activities included flattening of the head, while their women let down their long coarse hair. The Karankwas comprised of close to four group bands. The tribe lived in thatched huts along the coastal bays. Some of them made the hut walls out of animal skins. Their neighbors include the Coahuiltecan tribe.9They mainly used long bows and arrows for their hunting activities. During the period when they moved inward, they fended on buffalo meat as well as local berries and nuts. Aceremonial black drink made from Ilex leaves is one of their cultural practices by the men. One uniquefeature of this tribe is they divided their tribal roles into three groups. This included two men groups and one female one. Men and women carried out normal hunting and domestic duties. The second male group involved itself in carrying outreligious practices as well as some female roles in the community. In the late nineteenth century, European explorers inflicted them with foreign diseases. Their presence also caused conflict eruptions which made the Karankwas lose control over their land. In the early nineteenth Century, a pirate named Jean Lafitte established his kingdom amongst the Karankwas. The Coahuiltecan group is also one of the native tribes in Texas. This group mainly relied on collecting herbs, roots and pear cactus as a main source of diet. These people are known to have lived a little bit in isolation from other tribes in Texas. Also found in this region were the Apaches. These comprised of the Lipan group of people, who lived in the Far East region of Texas. This group of Indians as well known in fighting other ancient Texas communities, though research claims that these people merged with these groups to fight other Indian communities. The Mescalero was also another group from Texas of the Apache tribe. These people mainly occupied regions in the west and spread as far as the region presently known as Arizona. Later in the 19th Century, some immigrant groups merged with the native Texan tribes.10 These include the Comanche tribe, which made its migration route between the North and the North West. Due to their aggressive nature, they caused a lot of trouble as they settled in this area. The mobile nature of this group made them appear widespread as well as highly feared by other tribes. The region around Central Texas was occupied by the tribe known as Tonkawa. This group mostly practiced hunting of wild animals such as the deer and buffalos, which made them highly mobile. These tribes as well as many others migrated from the Mississippi area due to pressure from high population in the nineteenth century. They entered the Texas region as refugees, and ended up settling in it. Through the spread of immigrants and other explorers, the ancient communities have been displaced from their original areas of settlement. This has also led to a change in ancient cultural activities since different communities mixed during resettlement practices. Other reasons include colonization activity such as by the Spanish and missionary work by the Europeans. However, the diversity of ancient cultural practices still exists. This can be seen during cultural events carried out to date by the inhabitants of Texas. Notes Klos, George, "INDIANS," Handbook of Texas Online. Accessed April 6. 2014. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/bzi04. Hamilton, James. Diplomatic Correspondence of the Republic of Texas, Annual Report of the American Historical Association for the Year 1908. (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1911), 3 vols., 3: 937-939. Susan, Jeffers. Brother Eagle, Sister Sky Hardcover. (New York, NY: Dial, 1991), 65-70. Katz, William.  Black Indians: A Hidden Heritage. (New York, NY: Atheneum. 2012), 23 Emilio, Zamora, Cynthia, Orozco, and Rodolfo, Rochan. Mexican Americans in Texas History: Selected essays. (Texas: Texas State Historical Assn, 2000), 86 Bibliography George, Klos, "INDIANS," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/bzi04), accessed April 06, 2014. Uploaded on June 15, 2010. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. James, Hamilton. Diplomatic Correspondence of the Republic of Texas, Annual Report of the American Historical Association for the Year 1908. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1911, 3 vols., 3: 937-939. Jeffers, Susan. Brother Eagle, Sister Sky Hardcover. New York, NY: Dial. 1991. William Loren Katz,  Black Indians: A Hidden Heritage. New York, NY: Atheneum. 2012. Zamora, Emilio, Orozco, Cynthia and Rochan, Rodolfo. Mexican Americans in Texas History: Selected essays. Texas: Texas State Historical Assn. 2000. Read More