Tequesta Tribe of Florida: A Sun-Kissed History
Ever heard of the Tequesta? Probably not, unless you’re a history buff with a specific interest in Florida’s earliest inhabitants. These guys were a relatively small, chill tribe of Native Americans who called the southeastern Atlantic coast of Florida home. Think of them as the original Miamians – they were hanging out in the Biscayne Bay area way before the spring breakers and Art Deco buildings.
Who Were These Tequesta Folks?
You might see their name spelled a few different ways – Tekesta, Tegesta, Chequesta, Vizcayno – but they’re all referring to the same group. We’re talking about a tribe that settled near Biscayne Bay, right where Miami is today, way back in the 3rd century B.C.! That’s the late Archaic period, for those keeping score at home. They stuck around for a solid 2,000 years, which is a pretty good run.
Archaeologists have pieced together that the Tequesta were part of what’s known as the Glades culture. The cool thing about the Glades culture is that they had a continuous tradition of making pottery that lasted from around 700 B.C. all the way until Europeans showed up. Talk about consistency!
Like all of Florida’s original inhabitants, the Tequesta came from Mound-building ancestors that populated the east coast. They were one of the first tribes in South Florida, living on Biscayne Bay in what is now Miami-Dade County and further north in Broward County, at least as far as Pompano Beach. Sometimes, they even occupied the Florida Keys and might have had a village on Cape Sable, at the southern tip of the Florida peninsula.
Living the Tequesta Life
The Tequesta’s main town, which the Spanish called "Tequesta" (named after their chief), was located on the north bank of the Miami River. They lived in simple "huts" and built their villages near rivers, streams, inlets, and barrier islands. The chief had his digs in the main village at the mouth of the Miami River.
What’s interesting is that the Tequesta weren’t tied to one spot year-round. When mosquito season hit hard (for about three months), most of the folks from the main village would pack up and head to the barrier islands or the Florida Keys to escape the buzzing pests. Smart, right?
Now, here’s a bit of a power dynamic to keep in mind: the Tequesta weren’t entirely independent. They were under the thumb of the Calusa, a more powerful tribe from the southwest coast of Florida. The Tequesta were friendly with their neighbors to the north, the Jaega. While Biscayne Bay and the Florida Keys had enough resources to support the Tequesta without farming, it wasn’t as abundant as the southwest coast where the Calusa lived.
What Did They Eat?
Speaking of resources, the Tequesta didn’t do any farming. Instead, they were all about fishing, hunting, and gathering whatever fruits and roots they could find. The sea was their primary source of food.
There was this Spanish dude named Escalante de Fontanedo who was shipwrecked in the Florida Keys in 1545. He spent 17 years as a captive among the Calusa Indians, but he got to travel around and visit different tribes, including the Tequesta. He described their diet as "fish, turtle and snails, and tunny and whale." Apparently, Caribbean monk seal ("sea wolf") was a delicacy reserved for the upper class. They also liked to eat venison, and archaeologists often find deer bones at their old settlements. Sea turtles and their eggs were also on the menu during nesting season.
Skills and Customs
The Tequesta were skilled woodworkers. They made dugout canoes that they used for fishing and transportation along the coast and into the Everglades. Marriages were sometimes used to create alliances with other tribes.
As for clothing, less was more! The men wore loincloths made from deer hide, and the women wore skirts made of Spanish moss or plant fibers that hung from belts.
First Contact
The first time Europeans showed up on the Tequesta’s radar was in 1513, when Juan Ponce de Leon sailed into a harbor he called "Chequesta" – what we now know as Biscayne Bay.
Then, in 1565, one of Pedro Menendez de Aviles’ ships had to take shelter from a storm in Biscayne Bay. The Tequesta welcomed them. When the Spanish left, the chief’s nephew went with Jesuit priests to Havana to get educated, and the chief’s brother went to Spain with Menendez and converted to Christianity.
In March 1567, Menendez came back and set up a mission near the Miami River, with 30 soldiers and a Jesuit brother named Francisco Villareal. Villareal had learned some of the Tequesta language from the chief’s nephew.
Things were going okay until the Spanish accidentally killed the chief’s uncle. The Tequesta burned down the settlement and ran off to the Everglades. They later attacked the garrison, but most of the soldiers escaped to St. Augustine. Brother Francisco had to leave, but he came back when the chief’s brother returned from Spain. The mission was eventually abandoned in 1570.
Numbers and Influence
Estimates of the Tequesta population when the Europeans first arrived range from 800 to 10,000. The Calusa, on the other hand, were thought to have between 2,000 and 20,000 people. The Tequesta and Calusa may have fought over control of the Florida Keys. Spanish records mention a Tequesta village on Cape Sable, but there are more Calusa artifacts found there.
The End of the Tequesta
Starting in 1703, invading Creek Indians and other northern tribes pushed many tribes down the peninsula, forcing the remaining Calusa and Tequesta to the Islands. Many died from battles, slavery, and disease.
In 1704, the Spanish government moved Florida Native Americans to Cuba to convert them to Catholicism. The first group, including people from Key West, arrived in Cuba in 1704, and most of them died soon after.
In 1710, another 280 Florida Native Americans were taken to Cuba, where almost 200 died quickly. The survivors were returned to the Keys around 1716. In 1732, some Native Americans fled from the Keys to Cuba.
After this, the name Tequesta disappeared. In 1743, Francisco Javier Alegre said that the islands were inhabited by Indians who were descended from the Calusa and Tequesta.
The Miami Circle
The Tequesta left behind an archaeological site called the Miami Circle. Dr. Robert S. Carr discovered the site on the south bank of the Miami River in 1998. The 38-foot diameter ring of post holes carved into bedrock is thought to be between 1,700 and 2,000 years old. The circle is the foundation of a wooden structure built by the ancestors of the Tequesta people in what was possibly their capital. On February 5, 2002, the site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was declared a National Historic Landmark on January 16, 2009. The site’s well-preserved outline of American Indian architecture, artifacts indicating regional and long-distance trade, ceremonial use of animals, and association with the Tequesta people contribute to its national significance.
So, there you have it: a brief look at the Tequesta, one of Florida’s fascinating and often overlooked early tribes.