Fort Walton Culture
Fort Walton Culture was a mound-building Native American culture that flourished in southeastern North America, from approximately 1100~1550 CE.
The indigenous culture was centered near Ft. Walton Beach, Florida in the Southeastern United States. The Fort Walton Culture is named for the Fort Walton Mound site near Ft. Walton Beach. This culture was likely influenced by contact with the major Mississippian culture centers to the north and west, along the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys. It was the most important cultural complex in the northwest Florida region.
[edit] History
The Fort Walton peoples had a society with hierarchical settlement patterns that reflected other Mississippian-culture societies. Their intensive maize agriculture enabled more dense populations and development of a complex society. They built platform mounds for ceremonial, political and religious purposes. They made pottery in a variety of vessel shapes.
The Fort Walton peoples are believed to have been the ancestors of the historical Apalachee who encountered early European explorers and colonists, such as the Hernando de Soto Expedition in 1539.
[edit] Archaeology sites
The Lake Jackson Mounds site is the largest known ceremonial center of the Fort Walton culture. It has been classified as part of the Leon-Jefferson Culture, due to its artifacts' expressing Mississippian culture pottery traditions of both Apalachee Fort Walton and Lamar Phase (from eastern Georgia). It appears that the Lamar Phase-people moved south and assimilated with the Apalachee in this area.
The northwest Florida Region encompasses the Letchworth Mounds, and Velda Mound of Jefferson County, as well as the Lake Jackson mounds. The Leon-Jefferson Culture is generally defined as encompassing the Florida Panhandle east from the Chipola River to the Aucilla River. Cultural differences were displayed between the inland groups, who relied on the resources of what are now Leon and Jefferson counties, and those who used coastal resources.
[edit] External links
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