Iro^'UotA" trtbcs moved from 

 tViA N or t"K. 





Pa-Vuxervb area occupied nvostlj/ by 





f ^r 



^^^^ Present ar«aa WiLdlife l^esearcK CeTrvtef ^!j*4, X 

 t Indian artifacts found in open areas /*> 



Si oxxar* tribes -moved ia from, -IKc- Sou-tK 



Indian Way of Life 



To the Indian, fish and wildlife were the bread- 

 and-butter of a rugged culture. Deer, bear, and 

 turkey were some of the species the Indian hunted 

 with spear and arrow to supply the necessities of 

 life — food, clothing, and shelter. These animals 

 were all eliminated from Prince Georges County 

 by the advance of White Man's civilization, but 

 recently deer have been reestablislied, and they 

 can be seen again quite commonly here at the 

 Center and in adjacent areas. Wild turkeys were 

 restocked in 1960, and they may one day be re- 

 stored as the deer have been. 



Tlie eastern tribes of Algonquians lived in 

 wigwams made of sheets of bark fastened to a 

 framework of saplings. Some of the wigwams 

 were round or oval ; others were rectangular. The 

 frames and the overlapping bark were usually 

 bound together by various plant fibers. The fa- 

 vorite fiber foi- making strong cords was obtained 

 from the inner bark of basswood saplings. Fine 

 threads were often made from the fibrous bark of 



the stems of milkweed and of the closely related 

 dogbane gathered just before the fruit is ripe. 



Large floor mats were woven of bulrushes and 

 cattails. Dishes were made of clay and of soap- 

 stone, and one can still find fragments of the pot- 

 tery dishes around many old campsites in Mary- 

 land. 



Indians living along Chesapeake Bay and its 

 estuaries were excellent fishermen and hunters. 

 Their canoes were of the dugout type, made from 

 a single log which they shaped and hollowed out 

 with stone axes and by burning. When the cut- 

 ting and burning were completed, the cavity was 

 filled with water and hot stones were placed in the 

 water to heat it until the wood became pliable 

 enough for wooden cross braces to be driven in at 

 the middle to give it the proper spread. 



In addition to the great variety of birds and 

 mammals which the Indians obtained with bows 

 and arrows or with snares and deadfalls, many 

 kinds of plants were used for food. Small patches 

 of corn, beans, squash, and occasionally other 

 plants were cultivated around the villages. Even 



greater quantities of wild seeds, fruits, and vege- 

 tables were gathered by all the eastern tribes. 



Acorns, particularly those from the white oaks, 

 were an important food. The acorns were 

 parched and the hulls were removed by flailing. 

 Usually the bitter flavor was eliminated by a 

 series of steps: First the acorn "meats" were 

 boiled until nearly cooked, then the water was 

 drained off and tlie acorns were placed in a net bag 

 and boiled again in water to which wood ashes 

 were added. Finally, they were removed from 

 this water and simmered in fresh water to remove 

 the lye left by the wood ashes. They were then 

 ready for drying and grinding into meal. Stone 

 or wooden mortars and pestles were used for 

 grinding. The acorn meal was cooked with vari- 

 ous kinds of meats or made into a mush seasoned 

 with bear oil. 



Some tribes are reported to have removed the 

 bitter flavor from acorns by grinding the "meats'' 

 before removing the bitter tannin. A thin layer 

 of fine gravel was placed in a tightly woven basket. 

 The meal was scattered over this gravel, and the 



