Latest Archaeological Terminology:
CE – Common Era
BCE – Before Common Era
Archaic Era – 8,000 – 3,000 BC (BCE)
Woodlands Era – 3,000 BC (BCE) – 1,000 AD (CE)
Mississippian Era – 1,000 – 1,520 AD (CE)
Exploratory Period – 1,520 – 1,670 AD (CE)
Historic Period – 1670 AD (CE) - Present
Some of our ancestors have related stories to some of us about our long ago past. Some of our ancestors’ ancestors did not tell us much about the stories of our long ago past. Many of our ancestors never were told anything about our long ago past and they never shared our collective past with us. It is now time to realize the horrors of Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing are in our past and part of our present, but we must finally begin to understand who we are and where we came from as (Tiscamogie) Chickamauga.
First, we come from a Vast and Mighty Empire whose roots extend back as far as 2,000 BC (BCE). Our fertile crescent of civilization extends in two different directions from the Mesoamericas. First, from the eastern portion of the Mesoamericas to the Gulf Coast Regions of Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana then up the major river systems to the Great Lakes. Second, from the western Mesoamericas in Central America to the Rocky Mountains and to the west. Our Crescents were joined together by the East -West River systems of the Missouri, Arkansas, and Canadian.
The Mississippi River Bottoms, the reason the region is called the “Bottoms” is because it is the drainage system of the Mississippi River and extends between the Appalachians and the Rockies, is where our story bursts into reality on this continent. Prior to the heights of the Mound Builder Culture in North America between 700 and 1,000 AD (CE) there were migrations happening for centuries between Mesoamerica and North America. The Mound Building Culture and Religion of Mesoamerica became the dominate Indigenous culture on this continent. The Mound Building Culture can be seen along the Arkansas River in Oklahoma and Arkansas Mound Complexes. Along the Mississippi River Mound Complexes are present in Mississippi, Tennessee, Missouri and Illinois. Along the Ohio River Mound Complexes are seen in Indiana, Ohio, and West Virginia. Along the Tennessee River Mound Complexes are seen in Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia. While there were many Mound Building Cultures in North America which are branches of the Mesoamerica Cultures, we focus on the Southeast Woodland Mound Building Culture, because that is the branch which pertains to the Chickamauga.
Our story as Mound Builders extends as far back as 2,000 and 1,500 BC (BCE) according to almost all archaeologists and historians. As Chickamauga, for the most part, we focus on the 600 – 800 AD (CE) beginning point in Tennessee of the (Tisca-mogie or the Tisca of the Muskogean Era which has now been changed to the Mississippian Era) Chickamauga. We are like our Mound Building cousins, a hunting, fishing, gathering people who learned to inhabit one Region of North America. We would send hunters to the hunting fields of northern Tennessee and Kentucky to find food and trade.
We knew how to live on the land and off the land. We were stewards of the land, protectors of the land, because it was sacred, it provided for us and sustained us throughout our lives. The land gave us food and water, it gave us game and the materials to construct the shelters we lived in as far back as man can remember. We are a people who are one with the earth because the Creator created the earth and all that inhabit the earth. We share a bond to this planet and with this planet. Our human identity is formed in the earth and is sustained by the earth.
The technical timeframe we originate from in archaeological terms in drawn out across the Archaic, Woodlands, Mississippian, Exploratory, and Historic. Because our Mound Building Culture originates in 2,000 BC (BCE) does not mean the Chickamauga as a people group originated in 2,000 BC (BCE). We must be accurate is our use of archaeological term and historical terms because it demonstrates mental prowess when compared to others who use myths and legends to make claims of their origins and history.
Our men would hunt in shifts, the late fall/winter hunters and the early spring/summer hunters so that there were always hunting for the people in common. Those who stayed home kept gardens and gathered all the time with the purpose of preserving food stuffs for later. Our expertise in agriculture, animal husbandry, astronomy, architecture, hunting, and travel (canoe) is renowned. Our agricultural practices which allowed for abundant harvests year after year are still used as best practices by governments around the world.
So, what does that mean for us today? First, it means we have a story about our past that extend back over 1,500 years and possibly even as far back as 3,000 – 4,000 years if we wanted to stretch it just a little. Second, we have a history to be proud of because it is the history our ancestors lived to prepare the way for us in world in which we find ourselves today. Third, our ancestors did everything they could do to find food and preserve it for hard times. That reminds me of how ants behave, always preparing for the future. Finally, the hard work of our ancestors only guaranteed a possible next generation, because the next generation is never guaranteed. We do not know what is coming our direction, but the Creator prepared us to be able to handle all the issues together, as individuals living in community. We are not a people of individuals going about things on our own, we are a people of community, created for the purpose of supporting and sustained each other for a larger purpose in life.
Finally, Never forget we Mound Builders are from a Vast and Mighty Empire. WE must never forget we are bound to each other not only as family but as community. Our people were historically successful in preparing our future generations to prepare a way for their progeny. Today, we must come together as one people extending across 37 different states and different continents, to strengthen our bonds as Chickamauga. Our future 7 generations are depending upon us to make a path for them to be successful. We will never forget our past, we are Mound Builders, we will never forget our present, we are dispersed around this continent and Europe, and we will never forget about our future 7 generations who rely upon us to prepare the way for them. We will never forget because we are Tiscamogie, we are Chickamauga and we STAND.