Apalachee Province was the area in the Panhandle of the present-day U.S. state of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

inhabited by the Native American peoples known as the

Apalachee The Apalachee were an Indigenous people of the Southeastern Woodlands, specifically an Indigenous people of Florida, who lived in the Florida Panhandle until the early 18th century. They lived between the Aucilla River and Ochlockonee River,B ...

at the time of European contact. The southernmost extent of the Mississippian culture, the Apalachee lived in what is now Leon County,

Wakulla County Wakulla County is a County (United States), county located in the Big Bend (Florida), Big Bend region in the North Florida, northern portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 33, ...

and Jefferson County. The name was in use during the early period of European exploration. During

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

colonization, the Apalachee Province became one of the four major provinces in the Spanish mission system, the others being the

Timucua Province Beginning in the second half of the 16th century, the Kingdom of Spain established a number of missions throughout ''La Florida'' in order to convert the Native Americans to Christianity, to facilitate control of the area, and to prevent its ...

, (between the St. Johns and

Suwanee River The Suwannee River (also spelled Suwanee River) is a river that runs through south Georgia southward into Florida in the southern United States. It is a wild blackwater river, about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset hig ...

s), the

Mocama Province Beginning in the second half of the 16th century, the Kingdom of Spain established a number of missions throughout ''La Florida'' in order to convert the Native Americans to Christianity, to facilitate control of the area, and to prevent its ...

(along the Atlantic coast of what is now northern Florida and southern

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

) and the

Guale Province The Spanish missions in Georgia comprised a series of religious outposts established by Spanish Catholics in order to spread the Christian doctrine among the Guale and various Timucua peoples in southeastern Georgia. Beginning in the second ha ...

(along the Georgia coast north of the

Altamaha River The Altamaha River is a major river in the U.S. state of Georgia. It flows generally eastward for 137 miles (220 km) from its origin at the confluence of the Oconee River and Ocmulgee River towards the Atlantic Ocean, where it empt ...

History

Around 12,000 years ago, bands of

indigenous peoples Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

roamed the hilltops and lake shores of what are now Leon County and Jefferson County. They lived by hunting, fishing and gathering. Eventually they became more settled, making

stone tools A stone tool is, in the most general sense, any tool made either partially or entirely out of stone. Although stone tool-dependent societies and cultures still exist today, most stone tools are associated with prehistoric (particularly Stone Ag ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

, and then domesticating plants. By 1000 A.D., the indigenous people developed agriculture and cultivated numerous plants, particularly varieties of

maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The ...

, as the main staple food. Native Americans lived in scattered villages made up of

farmstead A homestead is an isolated dwelling, especially a farmhouse, and adjacent outbuildings, typically on a large agricultural holding such as a ranch or station. In North America the word "homestead" historically referred to land claimed by a set ...

s but gradually developed agricultural surpluses that allowed more population density. Apalachee Province was closely linked by trading and cultural exchange to other Native American cultures throughout the interior Southeast, including the later

Southeastern Ceremonial Complex The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex (formerly the Southern Cult), aka S.E.C.C., is the name given to the regional stylistic similarity of artifacts, iconography, ceremonies, and mythology of the Mississippian culture. It coincided with their ado ...

(SECC). As many as 60,000 people lived in 40 towns scattered through the area. Production of surpluses of

aided in the growth of towns and more complex cultures. The elite organized workers to construct complex earthwork

mounds A mound is an artificial heap or pile, especially of earth, rocks, or sand. Mound and Mounds may also refer to: Places * Mound, Louisiana, United States * Mound, Minnesota, United States * Mound, Texas, United States * Mound, West Virginia * ...

for religious, political and ceremonial purposes. The historical Apalachee occupied the

Velda Mound Velda Mound ( 8LE44) is a Native American archaeological site located in northern Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida, United States. The site was first occupied by peoples of the Fort Walton Culture (a regional variation of the Mississippian cul ...

site from about 1450 CE-1625 CE, although they mostly abandoned the site soon after the beginning of the Spanish Mission Period, c. 1565. After the

began colonization and brought in missions, they called this cultural area the Apalachee Province. The Apalachee Province was heavily depopulated with Carolina governor James Moore's raids into the area during

Queen Anne's War Queen Anne's War (1702–1713) was the second in a series of French and Indian Wars fought in North America involving the colonial empires of Great Britain, France, and Spain; it took place during the reign of Anne, Queen of Great Britain. In E ...

. Most of the Spanish missions in the province were destroyed during the Apalachee massacre.

Towns

Anhaica Anhaica (also known as Iviahica, Yniahico, and pueblo of Apalache) was the principal town of the Apalachee people, located in what is now Tallahassee, Florida. In the early period of Spanish colonization, it was the capital of the Apalachee Provi ...

was the capital of Apalachee Province, located near Myers Park in

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

. * Lake Jackson Mound site is located on the southern shore of Lake Jackson. *

was the center of an older town located north of Tallahassee. It is now within the Killearn Estates neighborhood."Velda Mound"
, ''Archeology Stabilization Guide'', Florida Heritage, p. 18, accessed 1 Feb 2010

Notes

References

The Apalachee and Mission San Luis

External links

Leon County Public WorksMission San Luis
{{authority control Apalachee Fort Walton culture Archaeological sites in Florida Regions of Florida History of Leon County, Florida Native American tribes in Florida Spanish missions in Florida Colonial United States (Spanish) Spanish colonization of the Americas

History

Towns

See also

Notes

References

External links