1. Alabama’s Early People Alabama History Chapter 3 Lesson 1 Early Alabamians

2. “Over here! I found something!”

3. “Great work! You’ve found a piece from a bowl that was left here long ago. We will add it to the others right away.”

4. The Mystery of Prehistory How do we learn about the past? –Through stories we have heard or have read. How do we learn about the past with no written language? –We learn about early history through fossils.

5. What is a fossil? A fossil is the preserved remains of a plant or animal from long ago. Examples of fossils are Leaves Skeletons Shells

6. What is a paleontologist? A paleontologist is a person who studies fossils to learn about the past. A paleontologist used tools such as picks chisels drills shovels brushes magnifying glass computers

7. What is an archaeologist? An archaeologist is a scientist who studies the lives and cultures of people from the past. Archaeologists use artifacts to study and learn about the past.

8. What is an artifact? An artifact is an object that was made and used by people long ago. Most artifacts are make of hard materials like bone, metal, or stone. Examples of artifacts are

9. Review Contrast the items that paleontologists and archaeologists use to learn about Alabama’s past (tell how they are different). Archaeologists use artifacts to study the past. Paleontologists use fossils.

10. Quick Summary Paleontologists and archaeologists use special tools and methods to build a picture of what life was like long ago.

11. The First People Arrive Many archaeologists have a theory that the first people came to North America from Asia between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago. A land bridge was connecting Asia and North America.

12. About 10,000 years ago, during the Paleo- Indian period, people may have started arriving in Alabama. They followed and hunted large animals and gathered plants to eat, so we call them hunter-gatherers. They lived places such as Russell Cave, Dust Cave, and Stanfield-Worley bluff.

13. People adapted, or changed, the way they lived after many large animals became extinct. During the Archaic people, people invented the atlatl (a spear that can be thrown) to hunt smaller animals.

14. Their small shelters of trees and brush or caves were built near rivers where they hunted and fished. These people also collected and ate nuts and seeds. They traded with others for food as well.

15. Review Compare and contrast the lives of Alabama’s first people during the Archaic period and the Paleo-Indian period. Both groups hunted animals for food, but the Paleo-Indian people moved from place to place and lived in the open countryside or in caves. People who lived during the Archaic period hunted locally, learned to catch fish, and made small shelters near rivers.

16. Quick Summary About 10,000 years ago, prehistoric Native Americans may have started arriving in what is now Alabama. They used the land’s available resources to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves.

17. Other Early Peoples About 2,000 years ago, during the Woodland period, many Native Americans stopped moving from place to place. They began to build houses and live in villages. The Woodland Indians began using the bow and arrow to hunt, instead of the atlatl. They also began to practice agriculture.

18. These Indians grew crops such as corn and squash, so they would not have to depend on hunting animals and gathering wild plants and fruits for all of their food. As villages grew they needed a government, or system of ruling people.

19. The Mississippian period developed government, by having chiefs rule the villages. The Mississippian Indians built mounds. Mounds have been found at Bottle Creek and at Moundville. Thousands of people lived in or near Moundville. Archaeologists have found items such as jewelry, pottery, and tools showing that the Mississippians were skilled craftspeople.

20. Moundville, Alabama

21. Review How were the Woodland and Mississippian peoples different? The Mississippians formed a type of government.

22. Quick Summary About 2,000 years ago, prehistoric Native Americans began settling and planting crops. In time their settlements grew into large villages in what is now Alabama.