The Native People of Florida
Patriot and Warrior, painting by Christopher Still
In the 1830s, the U.S. government decided to relocate Florida's native people to a new territory, today's Oklahoma. This sparked the Second Seminole War as the Seminoles resisted removal from Florida.
The war lasted for seven years, from 1835 to 1842. Eventually, some Seminoles left on their own, some were captured and sent to Oklahoma, and others escaped to the Everglades in south Florida. About 5,000 Seminoles were removed from Florida. Only about 200 were able to survive in the Everglades.
The Seminoles were made up of the descendants of Florida's many original tribes. These tribes combined with Natives from the southeast and escaped African slaves who found refuge with the Native people.
1. Who is the man in the painting above?
2. Circle and try to identify at least 3 different objects he is wearing.
3. Go to christopherstill.com/fl-house-of-reps and click on the picture that matches the painting above.
4. Click on "Go to link" to learn more about the objects you circled.
Free Play
What do you know about the daily life of Seminole Indians?
Florida is home to two federally recognized tribes: the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida and The Seminole Tribe of Florida. Both play an important role in Florida's culture and economy. The descendants of the 200 Seminoles who remained in Florida in 1860 lived in camps in the south Florida Everglades. Each camp had several open-air houses called "chickees" that were used for cooking, eating, sleeping, and working. The Seminoles also used new plants for food and medicine and developed a traditional style of clothing called patchwork. The campfire was the center of activity, and families gathered at night to share stories and legends.
Your task for this Free Play is to study an old photograph to identify what daily life was like for Seminole Indians.
Directions
View the photo below or on the Florida Memory website at floridamemory.com/items/show/141564.
Questions to Answer
1. What is your first impression about the photograph?
2. What things are happening in the picture?
3. How would you describe the people (their age, clothing, expressions, relationship)?
4. Make a list of activities that are taking place.
5. Make another list of objects in the photograph.
6. When do you think the picture was taken (the year, the time of day)?
7. Where was it taken? How can you tell?
State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, floridamemory.com/items/show/141564
