Where

• Lived in Northwest Florida originally. However, they were almost destroyed due to war (Queen Ann’s War otherwise known as the War of Spanish Succession) in the early 1700s, so their descendants now live in Alabama and Louisiana.

 

Community / Culture

• They had one chief (known as Holahta) chosen by a tribal council made of important men. The chief still had to report to the council. Otherwise, he may be replaced.

• Children played, went to school, helped out at home, hunted and fished with their fathers. In the early tribe years, they had more chores, but still had toys, dolls, and games. Teens often played ball games.

• The men were hunters and warriors.

• Women were farmers, cooks, and caretakers for children.

• Only men were elected as chief, but both genders told stories, made art, played music, and created medicine.

 

Housing

• Homes were rivercane huts thatched with palmetto or bark.

• There was one small house per family.

• Larger houses of the same style were constructed for the council.

 

Clothing / Appearance

• Men wore breechcloths

• Women wore wraparound skirts

• Not many of them wore shirts, but they did wear cloaks during cooler weather.

• Moccasins were worn on the feet

• They didn’t wear long headdresses like the Sioux; instead, men often shaved their heads into a Mohawk style and tied feathers on top.

• Men, especially warriors, wore red paint and many tattooed themselves for war and dance.

• Women did not have tattoos, but wore strings of shell jewelry.

 

Crops

• Their diet consisted of corn (maize), beans, squash, wild game, fish, wild fruits, berries, and nuts.

 

More info

• For transportation, the Apalachee used canoes from hollowed out cypress logs.

• They used dogs as pack animals. There were no horses in North America until colonists brought them from Europe.

• They used bows and arrows, clubs, axes, tomahawks, and knives as weapons.