PREHISTORIC MOUNDS IN THE VICINITY OF 

 TAMPA BAY, FLORIDA 



By M. W. STIRLING, 

 Cliicf, Bureau of American Ethnology 



In prehistoric times the region around Tampa Bay, Florida, was the 

 site of many villages, the inhabitants of which subsisted principally 

 upon the fish and mollusks which abounded in the shallow waters of 

 the bay. The kitchenmiddens which arose as a result of the accumu- 

 lation of refuse from these villages constitute the largest shell mounds 

 on the American continent. The writer spent the months of March 

 and April, 1929, in making a survey of the mounds in this neighbor- 

 hood. 



Because of the conspicuous nature oj these towering heaps of shells, 

 it is a comparatively simple matter to locate the ancient sites, despite 

 the fact that during the last 75 years countless tons of this material 

 have been hauled away to Ije used in the construction of roads. In 

 numerous instances mounds more than 30 feet in height and covering 

 many acres of ground have been almost completely obliterated within 

 the past few years. In many cases the houses of the village were con- 

 structed upon these refuse heaps, so that their destruction entails also 

 destruction of all traces of the habitations. 



During the writer's survey, more than 40 sites w^re located upon 

 Tampa Bay alone. At the present time but a single example of one of 

 the large shell mounds remains undisturbed. The huge refuse heap on 

 Cockroach Point, rising to an elevation of 50 feet, has escaped the dep- 

 redations of the road builder because of its comparative inacces- 

 sibility. The mound rises in a succession of terraces, each of which 

 was formerly occupied by houses. The flat summit of the mound was 

 undoubtedly crowned by a temple, from which point it is not unlikely 

 that dark-skinned observers watched in fear and wonder the progress 

 of De Soto's ships as they followed the winding channel into Tampa 

 Bay. 



In early historical times it is known that this region was oc- 

 cupied by the now extinct Calusa Indians, while immediately to the 

 north dwelt their neighbors, the Timucua. History gives us scant 

 information concerning the language and customs of these tribes. 

 The prolilem of the archeologist is to find more of their arts and 

 customs from the unintentional record they have left behind in their 



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