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Chapter 1. Early Life, East and West. Migration to the Americas. Lesson 1. Ice Age– long period of extreme cold Temperatures caused large areas of Earth’s waters to freeze, forming thick sheets of ice called glaciers . The levels of the oceans dropped. Moving to the Americas.
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Chapter 1 Early Life, East and West
Migration to the Americas Lesson 1
Ice Age– long period of extreme cold • Temperatures caused large areas of Earth’s waters to freeze, forming thick sheets of ice called glaciers. • The levels of the oceans dropped. Moving to the Americas
Bering Strait • The Bering Strait is a narrow stretch of water that separates Asia from North America. • During the Ice Age the Bering Strait became shallower causing land that was under water to be uncovered forming a large land bridge that that linked Asia and North America.
People • Migrate—move • Theory—possible explanation • The land bridge gave historians a theory that the first Americans came across the land bridge following large animals like the mammoth and caribou.
Some theorists believe the first Americans may have migrated to the Americas by boat. • Perhaps they are both right.
They adapted or changed their ways of living to meet the challenges of each environment as they traveled deeper into the Americas.
Food • Life was a struggle, and getting enough food for all to eat was often a challenge. • They lived in small bands, or groups of people. • Life centered on hunting, and they depended on wandering herds of animals for food. • When a mammoth is killed, they would stay nearby until its meat ran out.
The first Americans stripped the hides from the animals and made clothes from them. • They also stretched the hides over wood frames to make a temporary shelter. • They made tools like needles and scrapers from the animals bones and tusks.
Tools • They also made tools from stone. • Pressing one stone against another, they chipped spear points, knives and hand axes.
Artifacts • The earliest people left no written record of how they lived. • Artifacts—an objects someone made in the past. • Archaeologists study the artifacts of people who lived long ago and draw conclusions from them. • Studying bone needles reveal that people stitched long ago.
Changing Ways of Life • Earth’s climate began to get warmer and glaciers melted. • Perhaps the animals could not adapt to their new climate, or perhaps hunters had killed them off. • Whatever the cause, the first Americans had to find new sources of food.
New Food Sources • They continued to hunt small animals and fish.
They also gathered plants that grew wild, like grains, root vegetables, berries, and nuts.
Hunters became hunter-gatherers, but they were still on the move. • They moved with the seasons to find whichever foods the season provided.
Soon people began to grow food themselves. • Instead of gathering wild grain, they began growing the seeds themselves. • Agriculture made it possible for them to settle down in one place. Now wandering bands of hunter-gatherers could become members of settled communities.
Early American Cultures Lesson 2
The Mound Builders • The Great Serpent Mound is near Hillsboro, Ohio. • It was built by the Mound Builders.
They were one of several early American Indian groups that once flourished in North America. • They disappeared. Today we find signs of towns that no longer exist in many parts of our continent.
Location • Most Mound Builders lived east of the Mississippi River where the land is rich in forests, fertile soil, lakes, and rivers. • The Mound Builders were farmers who lived is settle communities.
3 Groups • They were not a single group of people • Adenas • Hopewell • Mississippians
Mounds • They built thousands of mounds in many different shapes.
At Cahokia (present day Illinois), a mound rises 100 feet, as tall as a 10-story building.
Some mounds were burial places for important chiefs. Some, like the Great Serpent Mound, may have been built to honor animals spirits that were part of the Mound Builders’ religion.
Many had platforms where ceremonies were held. • Ceremony—an activity done for a special purpose or event, such as a birth, wedding, or death.
Task of Mound Building • The Mound Builders left many clues for archaeologists to study. • Being able to build such enormous structures shows that they were well-organized. • Hundreds or even thousands had to be directed to dig up tons of earth with the hand tools available. Then the earth had to be moved—often over long distances—to a mound location. • Finally, the workers had to create the shape the builder had planned.
Trade • Artifacts tell us that trade was important to the Mound Builders
Knives found in mounds were carved from a rock called obsidian that came from the Rocky Mountains , from the west.
Seashells used in jewelry came from the Gulf of Mexico, hundreds of miles from the south.
Copper came hundreds of miles from near the Great Lakes, to the north.
Mica, a glittering mineral from the people of Cahokia prized, came from the Appalachian Mountains far to the east.
The Anasazi • The Anasazi were another farming group living in the Southwest of the United States. • Their name is a Navajo Indian word for “the old ones.”
Their communities were located in an area today called the Four Corners. • Four Corners—parts of 4 states (New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado)
Farming • The Anasazi grew corn, squash, beans, and pumpkins.
Although the climate is dry, the Anasazi’s farming was not limited.
They dug ditches to carry water from streams the crops in their fields. • They were the first people to use irrigation systems in what would become the United States.
Homes • The Anasazi were also known as the “cliff dwellers” because they sometimes carved houses into the sides of cliffs.
They also built apartment style houses several stories high on the tops of mesas.
Mesa—high, flat landform that rises steeply from the land around it. Mesa means “table” in Spanish.
Mesa Verde • Mesa Verde—Anasazi community in present day Colorado. • Has large village built into steep cliffs. • Has large overhanging rocks above it to protect from bad weather and attacks from their enemies. • The largest building is the Cliff Palace which has about 150 rooms. • It also has about 23 kivas. Kiva—where religious ceremonies are held. Only men are allowed to enter a kiva.
Daily Life • People used beautifully woven baskets. • They are so tightly and expertly woven they can hold water and be used for cooking. • Hot coals are put into the baskets with corn that has been ground into flour, beans, and other foods to make stew.
What Happened to the Anasazi? • The Anasazi suddenly abandoned their villages in the Four Corners. • No one knows for sure what happened to them.
One theory is that a drought, or a long period without rain, forced them to leave. • Streams dried up and irrigation became impossible • The Anasazi had to move to places where there was enough water for farming. • Historians believe Pueblo (including the Hopi) are the descendants of the Anasazi.
Nampeyo • Lived from about 1860 to 1942 • Studied the shards (pieces of broken pottery) of a Hopi village. • Found a way to recreate the ancient way of making pottery. • “I used to go to the ancient village and pick up pieces of pottery and copy the designs. That is how I learned to paint. But now I just close my eyes and I see designs and I paint them.” • Se began to lose her eyesight and eventually went blind. • She continued making pottery along with her children and grandchildren.
