Wateree

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The Wateree are a now extinct Native American tribe who last lived on the banks of the Wateree River in what is now Kershaw County, not far from the city of Camden , South Carolina in the southeastern United States . Its original origin is unclear, the Spanish conquerors described their location as very far from the coast near the Cherokee , the later English colonists and explorers met the Wateree on the upper reaches of the Yadkin River , and finally they settled near Camden.

From the little that is known about the Wateree, one concludes that they belong to the Sioux peoples and that they used a language from the family of the Sioux languages . However, it is known that the language was not understood by the Congaree who lived nearby , although they also used a Sioux language. The name of the Wateree possibly comes from the word wateran from the Catawba language and means " to float on the water "

The Indians lived in round, bark-covered dwellings in larger family groups. The settlements were surrounded by palisades or walls, there were sweat houses and meeting places. They plant corn , beans and squash , hunt deer and other game and fish in the region's rivers. The Europeans found the abundance of power accorded a Wateree chief in relation to other neighboring tribes extraordinary. According to her observations, the Wateree were ruled by female chiefs.

The Wateree were one of the first Indian tribes that Europeans encountered on the east coast of the continent. They are mentioned as early as 1567 by Juan de Valera when they met Juan Pardos' expedition in 1566 or 1567 and killed the soldiers he left behind. The tribe comprised an estimated 1000 members around 1600. In the Tuscarora War they fought on the side of the colonists against the Tuscarora in 1711 and 1712 , but turned against the colonists in the Lake Yamasee War in 1715 , who significantly decimated the tribe. Originally a very large tribe, they became part of the Catawba tribe in the mid-18th century. They were able to maintain their cultural identity until 1744, presumably some of today's Catawbas are descendants of the Wateree.

Today the Wateree River in the counties of Kershaw , Richland and Sumter reminds of the Indians who once lived on the bank. Several ships of the US Navy also bear the name Wateree.

literature

  • James H. Merrell: The Indians' New World: Catawbas and Their Neighbors from European Contact through the Era of Removal. University of North Carolina Press, 1989.
  • John R. Swanton: The Indian Tribes of North America. Smithsonian Institution Press, 1984, pp. 90-92.

Web links

South Carolina Information Highway: Wateree Last accessed July 3, 2008