Alabama History Chapter 1

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Alabama History Chapter 1

• Mrs. Wallace

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Where is Alabama?

• Alabama is located in the southeastern United
  States on the continent of North America in the
  Northern/Western Hemisphere.
• Alabama is bordered by Georgia to the east,
  Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the South,
  Mississippi to the west, and Tennessee to the
  north.

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Paleo Indians

• The first people of Alabama arrived approximately
  12,000 years ago. We believe they crossed the
  Bering Strait on a land bridge that connected
  Asia and North America.
• The first people of Alabama were Paleo Indians.

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Vocabulary to Know

• Archaeologists- study past cultures by looking at
  their tools, weapons, buildings, and other
  remains
• Prehistoric- means before history was written
  down
• Geologists- scientists who study how the earth
  was formed

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The 5 Geographic Provinces of Alabama

• The Highland Rim- level plains of fertile soil
  and gently rolling hills
• Cumberland Plateau- steep canyons and coal
  deposits
• The Ridge and Valley Province- includes
  Birmingham and Red Mountain- known for iron ore,
  coal, and limestone
• The Piedmont Province- means foot of the
  mountains Mount Cheaha (the highest point in
  Alabama is located here)
• The Coastal Plain- The border between the
  Piedmont and the Coastal Plain is called the fall
  line. It makes up more than half of the state.
  A band of dark rich soil called the black belt is
  found in the Coastal Plain.

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The 5 Geographic Provinces of Alabama
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Paleo Indians

• When the Paleo Indians came to Alabama they came
  following herds of now extinct food animals. They
  were hunters and gatherers.
• The Paleo Indians found places to live that would
  be both safe and close to food sources.
• Paleo Indians were skilled at using natural
  resources. They were also excellent artists.
  Scientists have found petroglyphs carved into
  rocks. These offer clues about the religious
  beliefs.
• Paleo Indians hunted large prehistoric animals
  like mastodons and woolly mammoths.

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Archaic Indians

• Like the Paleo Indians, the Archaic Indians were
  hunters and gatherers. The Archaic Indians made
  use of other resources too.
• Unlike the Paleo Indians, Archaic Indians tended
  to stay longer in one place.
• Archaic Indians lived on the rivers, where they
  harvested fish and shellfish during the summer.
  In the fall and winter they moved to the forests
  to collect nuts and to hunt.
• Archaic people developed many tools, such as the
  atlatl, or throwing stick for hunting. Burial
  sites show that the Archaic Indians traded for
  special items.

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Archaic Indians

• Vocabulary Horticulture Archaic Indians paid
  attention to where certain plants grew well and
  tried to encourage plant growth.
• Archaeologists believe that finding rare or
  precious items in a persons grave probably meant
  they were important to the group. Scientists
  also think the Archaic people believed in life
  after death.
• Archaic Indians made bowls and other items from
  stone.

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Archaic Indian and Atlatl
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Woodland Indians

• The Woodland Indians began making pottery to cook
  and store food with. They also developed the bow
  and arrow, which improved hunting.
• The Woodland Indians had a healthier, more
  dependable diet, and as a result the population
  grew.
• The Woodland Indians stayed in one
• place for at least a season.
• Leaders began to form during the
  Woodland time period.

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The Rivers of Alabama

• Tennessee River In the north dips down into
  the northeastern corner of the state, then flows
  northwest and down again.
• Tombigbee and Black Warrior Rivers On the
  western side of the state.
• Alabama River Formed where the Coosa and
  Tallapoosa Rivers join.
• Cahaba River Joins to the Alabama River flows
  down from the mountains near Birmingham.
• Mobile River Formed where the Alabama meets the
  Tombigbee.
• Chattahoochee River To the east forms part of
  the boundary with Georgia.

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Alabama Rivers
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Mississippian Period and Native Americans

• Native Americans were attracted to the abundant
  plant and animal life found in and along these
  waterways.
• With hundreds of miles of waterways, Native
  Americans did not have to travel far to find good
  water and transportation.
• People during the Mississippian period lived in
  chiefdoms. Chiefs and priests lived in town, and
  they made the laws and led the people in peace
  and war.
• Mississippians still hunted and fished, but
  farming was central to their society.
• Mississippian society included nobles and
  commoners. Nobles were related to the chief or
  priests. Commoners served the nobles.

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Moundville

• The Moundville site contains some twenty mounds.
  The largest is almost sixty feet tall and covers
  nearly two acres.
• The mounds may not have been built primarily for
  tombs. Houses of the chiefs and priests were
  located on the flat tops of some of the mounds.
• When a chief or priest died, his followers might
  burn or tear down his house, add a new layer of
  dirt, and build a new house for the next leader.

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Moundville
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Bottle Creek

• Located on an island in the delta of the Mobile
  and Tensaw Rivers.
• Contained at least eighteen mounds, and the city
  was the social and governmental center of the
  region.
• Both Moundville and Bottle Creek went into
  decline and people began moving away, leaving the
  sites all but deserted. We do not know for sure
  why the Mississippian culture declined.
  Scientists think warfare and diseases brought by
  Europeans caused this decline.

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Vocabulary to Know

• migration the movement of people or animals
  from one place to another
• fossil remains of a living thing from a former
  geologic age
• inhabitants people who live in a particular
  place
• erosion the wearing away of land by wind,
  water, or weather over a long period of time
• middens garbage dumps used by Archaic Indians
• chiefdoms groups of tribes with common goals
  and beliefs that unite for power
• palisades a fence of stakes set firmly in the
  ground to enclose or protect a place