#chitimacha — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #chitimacha, aggregated by home.social.
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Reading about the Bayou:
"The Chitimacha subsisted on maize, potatoes, and wild game. They preferred deer, alligator, and aquatic species. Hunting and fishing were accomplished with the aid of bone, stone, or garfish scale pointed arrows, or through the use of blow guns and wooden darts, as well as, nets and traps for fishing. The Chitimacha were prolific ceramics producers until about 200 years ago when those techniques were lost to history, however the designs are said to have been similar to those employed in basketry.
The crown jewel of the Chitimacha cultural tradition is river cane basketry, both single and double woven. According to tribal legend, basketry was taught to the Chitimacha by a deity and has been practiced by tribal families for thousands of years. There are at least 50 different design elements, which can be combined to create hundreds of different basket designs.
At the time of contact with European explorers and other non-indigenous populations, the Chitimacha were known as the most powerful tribe between Texas and Florida. Iberville, an early French explorer, encountered the Chitimacha and one of their subdivisions, the Washa along the shores of the Mississippi River in 1699. In 1706, as a response to slave raids and French aggressions, a group of #Chitimacha killed St. Cosme, a priest and slave owner, and several members of his party, who were missionaries to the Natchez Tribe. Bienville responded to this by convincing other tribes to help them make war on the Chitimacha. This war lasted until 1718 when a Chitimacha Chief met Bienville in the fledgling city of New Orleans. A treaty establishing peace was signed and a ceremony was held, which ended the long war in which the majority of the tribal members were annihilated. In the twelve years of conflict, many Chitimacha were forced into slavery and were the most enslaved of any population in Louisiana during that time period."