1. Prehistoric Indians
The first Coloradoans

2. Overview Prehistoric Indians Paleo Indians Clovis Period Folsom Period
Plano Period
Pueblo Farmers

3. Prehistoric Indians
Indians that lived on the land before written history existed
Historians say these are the Indians that crossed the Bering strait and migrated to the North and South American Continents
Archaeologists have discovered tools and artifacts from this era.

4. Paleo Indians Lived in small family units
Continuously searching for food
Always on the move
They camped near rivers and streams to be close to water
The plants and animals that needed water became the main food groups for these people
They would sometimes follow large animals into the mountains use the meat and hide

5. Clovis
Most likely the first group of Paleo Indians to live in Colorado
Around 15,000 years ago
Most common artifacts found for this group of Indians are animal bones and spear points
These are some of the oldest artifacts ever found in CO

6. Folsom/Plano Period Folsom Plano
The next group of Paleo Indians to live in CO
Similar to the group before they were hunter/gathers and used spear points as their main weapons
Are thought to have lived about 10,000 years ago
Plano
Last group of Paleo Indians
The climate change created grasslands where forests use to stand
They did not move as much, instead they moved with the seasons not the animals
Still hunted animals but were finding better and more effect ways to hunt

7. River of Bones
Plano people learned to kill large number of animals at a time
Plano Indians would scare groups of Bison
Using spears and dogs
Push the group to a cliff
The bison would fall to their deaths
There are several different sites in CO where these “bison jumps” have been found
James-Miller Bison Kill site Northeast CO

8. Pueblo Famers Who are they? Creating a Community
They lived in CO at the end of the Archaic period
The ancestral Puebloans the Anasazi
Navajo word for “ancient enemy” or “outsider” Puebloans did not like this name
Creating a Community
The First Puebloans lived on the flat-topped mesas along the Mancos River
This area today is called Mesa Verde
Mesa Verde means “green tableland” in Spanish
Ancestral Puebloans were farmers
Squash beans and corn

9. Creating a community How could they farm? Where did they live?
To water plants/crops during dry periods they dug ditches to move water from the nearby streams
They also built dams to create large ponds to have water stored for later use.
Where did they live?
Ancestral Puebloans live in Pit houses
Each house had a large main room with a fire pit in the middle
Built close together to form a community
Built around a Plaza

10. Creating a community Where did they live?
Villages also had special rooms that were called Kivas
Kivas were close to the plaza were round and usually used for important ceremonies or special activities
In the middle of the Kiva was a small hole called a sipapu, it was thought to be the passage to from the underworld
The belief was this is how people first came to the world
Spirits of the dead could go back to the spirit world through this hole

12. Creating a community Food and Tools New tools = The bow and arrow
Improved hunting
Bone hooks= weighted fishing hooks
Improved fishing
Some even raised turkeys
Planting and Harvesting= less time than gathering
Began to make clay pottery

13. From Pit Houses to Cliffs
Better home builders
Used mud and stone to create a new type of home
Built them tall so they could hold many families
2-3 stories high

14. The First Coloradans