Table of Contents
When did the Tequesta come to Florida?
1513
The first record of European contact with the Tequesta was in 1513, by Juan Ponce de León when he discovered the Florida coast.
How did the Tequesta dress?
Like other south Florida Indians, the Tequesta wore very little clothing, just breechcloths (loincloths), perhaps made of palmetto, for the men, and skirts of Spanish moss for the women.
How long did the Tequesta tribe live?
roughly 2,000 years
They had lived in the region since the 3rd century BCE (the late Archaic period of the continent), and remained for roughly 2,000 years, having disappeared by the time that Spanish Florida was traded to the British, who then established the area as part of the province of East Florida.
What kind of people was the Tequesta tribe?
Historians consider the Tequesta a generally peaceful–though powerful–Native American tribe. The Tequesta welcomed early European explorers after being offered gifts of cloth, tools and alcohol.
Where did the Tequesta of Biscayne Bay live?
The Tequesta of Biscayne Bay. The Tequesta (tuh-KES-tuh) were a small, peaceful, Native American tribe. They were one of the first tribes in South Florida and they settled near Biscayne Bay in the present-day Miami area. They built many villages at the mouth of the Miami River and along the coastal islands.
Where was the center of the Tequesta civilization?
Their central town (called “Tequesta” by the Spaniards in honor of the chief) was on the north bank of the Miami River. A village had been at that site for at least 2,000 years. The Tequesta situated their towns and camps at the mouths of rivers and streams, on inlets from the Atlantic Ocean to inland waters, and on barrier islands and keys.
When did the Tequesta Indians come to Florida?
During the 1500s, Europeans began arriving in Florida. At first, the Tequesta did not welcome these new visitors. But before long, the Europeans won their friendship by bringing gifts of colored cloth, knives, and rum. The Tequesta numbered about 800, but they started to die out as a result of settlement battles, slavery, and disease.