Despite the social complexity and political might that the Calusa attained, they are said to have eventually went extinct around the end of the 18 th century. They are attacked by Spain, which in 1566 had established St. Augustine in the north. Darcie A. Macmahon and Dr. William H. Marquardt, an expert on the Calusa, have written a fascinating book that brings to life a group of people who disappeared from Florida in the 1700s. This language was distinct from the languages of the Apalachee, Timucua, Mayaca, and Ais people in central and northern Florida. Directly beneath the chief was the nobility. One of the most notable traditions of the Calusa was their use of shell mounds. Their territory was bounded in northwest Florida by the Aucilla and Ochlockonee rivers, and . In 1711, the Spanish helped evacuate 270 Indians, including many Calusa, from the Florida Keys to Cuba (where almost 200 soon died). The Spanish were used to dealing with natives who farmed and who provided the Spanish with some of their food. Tools for fishing were made of shell, wood, and plant materials and included hooks and spears, nets, net floats and sinkers, cord, and anchors (Fig. Conversion would have destroyed the source of their authority and legitimacy. We do not fully understand the complexities of what happened to them. [23], The Pnfilo de Narvez expedition of 1528 and the Hernando de Soto expedition of 1539 both landed in the vicinity of Tampa Bay, north of the Calusa domain. Though eschewing agriculture once. Soon 20 war canoes attacked the Spanish, who drove off the Calusa, killing or capturing several of them. For a long time, societies that relied on fishing, hunting and gathering were assumed to be less advanced, said Marquardt. Later periods in the Caloosahatchee culture are defined in the archaeological record by the appearance of pottery from other traditions. By the early 19th century, Anglo-Americans in the area used the term Calusa for the people. The Calusa, who had no immunity against such illnesses, were wiped out in large numbers. (2004). While there is no evidence that the Calusa had institutionalized slavery, studies show they would use captives for work or even sacrifice. However, they would suffer the same fate as many of the other Native American tribes. It's also rich with the history and culture of the Calusa Indians, the Native Americans who preceded us, even if their footprints are a bit blurry. The Calusa people based most of their diet on seafood. The Calusa have long fascinated archaeologists because they were a fisher-gatherer-hunter society that attained unusual social complexity, said William Marquardt, curator emeritus of South Florida Archaeology and Ethnography at the Florida Museum of Natural History. Although he did not know much about the history of the Calusa Indians, what he did know was the legend in Tampa that the Calusa Indians cast a spell to keep them safe. The canals were maintained until the mid-1700s, when the tribe disappeared from . The Calusa Native Americans. American Archaeology cover, featuring Florida Museum illustration by Merald Clark. The Calusa Indians. The shell mounds are an example of these remains. Native American art,