Hitch Village/Fred Wessels Homes in Savannah in Chatham County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)

Native Americans on the Georgia Coast

Photographed by Mike Stroud, 2009

1. Native Americans on the Georgia Coast Marker

Inscription. Long before Europeans arrived in the New World, the Savannah area was occupied by Native Americans. The earliest Paleoindian groups migrated into coastal Georgia as early as 10,000 B.C. The hunter-gathers took advantage of rich estuarine resources as well as upland plants and animals. During the period identified as Woodland by archaeologists, a more sedentary lifestyle was adopted. Villages became more permanent and crop cultivation contributed to subsistence along with hunting and fishing. When the first Georgia settlers arrived in Savannah in 1733, they encountered members of the Creek tribe living along the river.

Native American Pottery

The Green Corn

Preserving Game through Smoking

Native American Canoes

Savannah River points
Savannah River points were attached to wooden spears and used to kill game. This style of projectile point is associated with the Late Archaic period, 3,000 to 1,000 B.C.

First Americans Hunting Big Game
The first Native Americans on the Georgia coast were nomadic peoples that hunted large game such as mastodon with spears.

Hunting Smaller Game
Native

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Americans living along the coast of Georgia and northeast Florida were documented in the 16th century by French artist Jacques le Moyne de Morgues. His illustrations depicted hunting game such as deer and alligator. Bear, bison, rabbit, turkey, squirrel and other animals also supported the rich Native American diet.

Erected 2009 by U.S. Dept. Of Transportation Federal Highway Administration, Georgia Dept. of Transportation. (Marker Number 12.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Indigenous Peoples and Communities • Settlements & Settlers • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical year for this entry is 1733.

Location. 32° 4.792′ N, 81° 5.007′ W. Marker is in Savannah, Georgia, in Chatham County. It is in Hitch Village/Fred Wessels Homes. It is on East River Street, on the right when traveling south. West of the E. Broad St. Ramp at Riverside. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Savannah GA 31401, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the Coastal Plain and on the Georgia Coast and the Golden Isles.

Native American Pottery image. Click for full size.

Native Americans on the Georgia Coast Marker

2. Native American Pottery

Pottery first appeared in Georgia around 1,500 B.C. Forms of this pottery consisted mainly of bowls and conical jars (above). Vessels were decorated by stamping, incising and impressing the wet clay before firing. The above types represent pottery decorations associated with the Woodland and Mississippian time periods in Chatham County .

The Green Corn
As Native Americans became more sedentary, they increasingly relied on the cultivation of wild vegetables such as beans, pumpkins, sunflowers and tabacco. Part of this process was the Green Corn Festival in which Native Americans gave thanks for the harvest through games, fasting and other rites.

is also in the American South

and specifically in the Deep South.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: 1996 Olympic Yachting Cauldron (within shouting distance of this marker); Savannah's Early Economy (within shouting distance of this marker); Crossing the Savannah (within shouting distance of this marker); “Liberty” 1775 (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Savannah's Liberty Ships and the Atlantic Bridge (about 300 feet away); Old Harbor Light (about 400 feet away); Ironclads and Gunboats of the Savannah River Squadron (about 400 feet away); The Liberty (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Savannah.

Savannah River points image. Click for full size.

Native Americans on the Georgia Coast Marker

3. Savannah River points

Preserving Game through Smoking image. Click for full size.

Native Americans on the Georgia Coast Marker

4. Preserving Game through Smoking

Food was preserved through smoking the meat on racks of green willow. The frame was called barbacoa. This is the origin of the modern word barbeque.

Native American Canoes
Canoes were produced by hollowing out large logs usually from cypress. These vessels were used as fishing boats as well as to transport people and agricultural goods. Native Americans harvested a bounty of marine life. They consumed turtles, eels, mussels, clams, and oysters.

First Americans Hunting Big Game and Hunting Smaller Game image. Click for full size.

Native Americans on the Georgia Coast Marker

5. First Americans Hunting Big Game and Hunting Smaller Game

Photographed by Mike Stroud, May 24, 2009

6. Native Americans on the Georgia Coast Marker as seen along the Savannah River

Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 26, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. This page has been viewed 5,168 times since then and 88 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on May 26, 2009, by Mike Stroud of Bluffton, South Carolina. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.