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Everyday Life
Among The Southeastern Creeks
Part II
Topics This Page:
Domestic Animals & Transportation
Houses and
Community Structures
Dress
Marriage & Family Life
Education &
Children's Activities
Health
Sports & Recreation
Domestic
Animals & Transportation
 Before
the arrival of Europeans with their horses, mules and oxen, there were no
large animals native to North America that could be used as sources of
energy or transportation. Before the introduction of these animals, the Indians used
dugout canoes or walked wherever they went and relied on their own strength,
cooperation and ingenuity to accomplish tasks which animals would later
perform. Providing for food, shelter & defense was the greatest
responsibility of the adults. The work was hard and cooperation essential,
but in reality, food was abundant and the Creek people enjoyed far more
personal freedom and relaxation time than their European counterparts.
Virtual Reality Drawing,
Richard L. Thornton
It
should be remembered that the introduction of the plow and domestic animals
would have a disruptive effect on the Indian way of life and was not
necessarily well received. By
the mid 1700’s, with the depletion of the deer population through hunting
for the European market, the abundance of food could no longer be counted
upon to keep the people fed. (More than 100,000 deerskins were shipped to
Europe from the port of Charleston, SC between 1700 and 1750.)
Traditionally, women were the primary homemakers, gardeners and gatherers,
while the men hunted, fished and defended the community—a division of
labor based on cooperative effort. Once the available supply of game had
been depleted, a new model was strongly encouraged by government agents to
improve the food supply. It required the men to focus entirely on working
independent farmsteads as was customary in Europe.
The endless labor of plowing, maintaining fences and caring for
domestic animals was not well received as occupations for men.
This resistance to change by a people who had long enjoyed a free and
relaxed communal way of life was not understood by the Europeans who often
portrayed the resisting Indians as being “lazy and indolent.”
Houses
and Community Structures
Back to Top
In
the traditional Creek village, dating from the Mississippian ancestors of
the Creeks, family compounds within a permanent town or village, would be
arranged around a central community area. This central area consisted of several structures adjoining a rectangular
‘chunky yard’ used for games and dances. A smaller square with open
shelters called ‘beds’ on all four sides was used during summer for
ceremonies and other important events. Each ‘bed’ according to its
placement was designated for specific individuals.
The
most dominant structure was a large, round
Council House or ‘Chokofa’ up
to 40’ in diameter which served as a multi-purpose winter gathering place.
The Chokofa had thick walls of thin poles or bark lashed to a
framework of pine logs. The walls were filled inside
and out with clay and grass plaster and
painted
with a whitewash compounded of
decayed oyster shell, coarse chalk, or white clay. The cone-shaped roof
with an opening at the top was
made of thatched materials:
dry grasses, bark, or
palmetto fronds depending on what was most readily available. The walls
& floors were covered with mats woven
of cane or flexible twigs. A single fire in the center provided light and
ample heat even in the coldest winters. Early English traders who described
the interior as ‘dark and smoky’ referred to the Chokofa as a ‘hott
house.’
The
family complex or hutti with as many as four rectangular buildings, was also
arranged around a central square. It might include a smaller version of the
round community chokofa which would have been used as the family's winter
house. The center fire of the winter house was also used for cooking. It
provided a very warm winter dwelling. The winter house might also have been
used for summer guest quarters. Summer houses were rectangles approximately
12 x 22 ft. with gabled roofs covered with bark, grasses, or in very
southern areas, palmetto fronds. The walls were covered with woven mats
which allowed for cross ventilation. Both the winter and summer houses had
built in beds supported by the poles of the outside walls.
Other buildings of a family compound consisted of a thatched roof
open-air shelter used for cooking and other family activities, and a
two-story granary / storage building built with the same construction
techniques. The Creeks also
built log houses of the ‘dog trot’ style which were later adopted by the
early settlers. *The
construction of all buildings within a town was a joint effort and could be
accomplished rather quickly.
Dress
Back to Top
 The ancient Creek
People, living in a warm climate, wore a minimum of clothing.
Men wore a breech cloth of deerskin; the women, skirts made from
finely woven plant fibers,
such as from the inner bark of the mulberry tree.
Both men and women wore a top made from a long strip of the same
fibers which draped over the left shoulder. This woven fiber was described
by one in DeSoto’s expedition as being as beautiful as any silk from the
orient. For the cooler months, the people wore warm clothing made from
well-tanned deerskins with outer wraps of fur hides, woven fiber blankets
or feather mantles After contact with Europeans, and the introduction of cotton cloth,
the Creek camp dress we know
today, similar to dresses worn by pioneer white women, gradually evolved.
Cotton, calico-type cloth was favored and both women's long, tiered
dresses and men's long shirts
would be decorated with flowing ribbons, feathers, beads
and shells. Leggings
and moccasins were made of deerskin and often decorated with elaborate
beading. Men often wore
turbans -- long strips of fabric wrapped about the head, sometimes
decorated with feather plumes. Turbans
could be unwrapped and used as hammocks to sleep off the damp ground and
away from unwanted guests. (Bearheart)
Above
sketch - Creek chief and family drawn by George Catlin about 1830.
The
life ways of the early Creeks were community based.
Every Creek was a member of one of several clans and family ties
were clan-based. Marriages were required to be with someone from a
different clan. In Road To Disappearance, Debo gives detailed description
of early Creek marriage protocol which illustrates how the complex family
structure served to protect the interests of women and children.
In brief: Marriages were sometimes arranged by the clan, but
usually the man selected his own wife. A protocol
was followed whereby female members of the man’s family first
approached the women of the girl’s family. They in turn referred the
proposal to the woman’s brothers and maternal uncles. If the men of
her family approved, word was sent back to the man’s family.
The man then sent presents to the women of the girl’s family and if
they were accepted, the marriage was consummated.
The
girl remained with her family and the man went to live with her as husband
and wife. But the marriage was not permanent until he had proven himself
to be an able provider. To do
this, he must have planted and gathered a crop, brought her a supply of
game and provided her a house. Like nearly every labor performed by the
Creeks, the house would be constructed as a communal enterprise under the
direction of the town officials. During this time of temporary marriage,
usually of some months, the couple could separate at will.
Since the Green Corn Ceremony occurred at the time of the corn
harvest, final recognition of the marriage was often celebrated as part of
the sacred ceremonies. If a
man neglected to work in her cornfield during succeeding years, a wife was
released from her marriage obligations. Divorce could be secured by either
party but was rare in families with children. In the case of divorce, the
children and the property remained in the possession of the wife.
Children
were members of their mother’s clan. The discipline and education of
children was the responsibility of the mother and her family. An older
maternal clan uncle or grandfather would teach a young boy the things he
needed to learn rather than his father. While the father was responsible for providing food and
protection for his children, and would be treated respectfully in his
home, his role as a teacher and mentor would be on behalf of his
sisters’ children.
Indian
family life was much more relaxed and less structured than in modern
times. Before eating and other activities, the day would begin at dawn
with a bath in the nearest river or stream. Meals were not necessarily
eaten at a particular time when all would come together, however
the largest meal would have been prepared by early afternoon.
Food would be kept ready so that anyone could find something to eat
when hungry. A thick, rich
gruel made of corn called ‘Sofkee’ was a favorite for everyday and
special occasions and would be kept on hand at all times.
Demonstration
Idea: A facsimile of traditional Sofkee can be made from canned hominy
and makes a good addition to any student presentation.
In a pan, mash and heat the hominy, including the liquid
and a pinch of baking soda. Pass
out small portions in a cup with ice-cream spoon for sampling.
Education
and Children’s Activities
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Among
the Creeks, the division of labor for men and women was not unlike that of
many other cultures. Education for children was centered around
‘learning by doing’ the skills they would need to participate as
adults in their society. This
was incorporated in the children’s many hours of play.
From an early age, boys began developing the physical and mental
skills they would need by learning to make and use weapons and tools. From
the elders boys learned the ways of the wild animals and how to use this
knowledge for successful hunting. Competitive
games provided the means to develop hunting skills.
Likewise, girls learned the skills they would need by playing and
working alongside the older women of their mother’s clan. This might
include gathering and learning about the various wild plants used for
food, seasoning and medicine
as well as the many other tasks assigned to women such as gardening and
food preparation, tanning hides, sewing garments, basket and pottery
making.
Health
Back to Top
Before
the introduction of European infectious diseases, from smallpox to measles
and the common cold, for which the Indians had no resistance, the people
of the Southeast enjoyed splendid health. The problems most observed by
early European students of the Creek way of life were ‘rheumatism’ and
intestinal parasites. Creek medicine men had a host of herbal remedies for
most ailments which seemed to have served very well. An excellent diet of
fruits, vegetables and wild game, as well as constant physical activity
made for slim, healthy bodies with little disease.
Sports
&
Recreation
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The
Creeks enjoyed competitive sports and games. Children played many games
which also served to hone their skills with weapons--such as competitions
with bow and arrows or blow guns which they made themselves.
Boys wrestled and held foot races and tried to beat one another
throwing small spears through rolling hoops. They also played games
similar to rolling dice and a board game similar to Parcheesi. Everyone
loved games of chance.
 Chunky
was a favorite competitive sport. A small stone disc would be sent on its
way rolling down the chunky yard. Competitors would throw spears or shoot
arrows calculated to land nearest the point where the chunky stone would
stop. Many prized possessions might be wagered on the outcome of the game.
Indian ball play, or stick ball, was the most important sport among older
children and adults.
This extremely rough ball game is similar to La Crosse, which was
patterned after it. Players
used
two sticks with a woven oval-shaped cup on one end to propel a small
deer-hide ball down the field and into a goal. There could be 50 or more
players on each team in this wild and wooly game referred to as ‘The
Little Brother of War.’ For this ball play, the people had a passion
rivaling today’s sports fans. Injuries
were common as the teams of different towns
competed to the cheers of the people they represented. Usually this
was friendly competition, in fact it was considered ‘unmanly’ to show
anger during the game. Many times, however, the ball game held much
greater significance. Major
disputes between towns or neighboring clans were often settled by the
outcome the ball game.
* A special thank you to artist,
Buck Woodard for illustrations in Creek Life Ways
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