The Apalachee, were regarded as being wealthy and fierce and one of the principle native tribes of Florida. They held the region north of Apalachee Bay which extended to the Aucilla River in the east to the Ochlockonee River in the west. Its northern boundary extended to what is now the Georgia state line, and its southern border was the Gulf of Mexico. The Apalachee's main towns were near the present Tallahassee(the State Capitol of Florida) and St Marks. Some think the Apalachee language was related to Hitchiti of the Muskhogean language family and linguistically more nearly related to the Choctaw than to the Creeks. The name is of uncertain etymology, but is believed to be from the Choctaw A`palachi, signifying 'people on the other side.'

Prior to European contact, there were probably at least 50,000-60,000 Apalachees. They were a strong and powerful chiefdom living in widely dispersed villages. Their leaders organized their work, and much of their social, ritual and political life as well. Other tribes respected the Apalachees because they belonged to an advanced native civilization, The Apalachee were visited by the expeditions under Narvaez in 1528 AD and DeSoto in 1539 AD, and the latter made their country his winter headquarters on account of its abundant resources for subsistence. The people were agricultural, industrious and prosperous.For food, they grew corn, beans and squash. Men prepared the fields and women tended the crops. Men also hunted bear, deer and small game, while women gathered nuts and berries.

Traditionally the men wore deerskin loincloths and women wore Spanish moss skirts. When preparing for battle, the men painted their bodies with red ochre and put feathers in their hair.The Apalachees played a ball game that was a religious exercise as well as a sport. One village would challenge another to a match, and the two teams would have up to 100 players each. They used a hard clay ball (about the size of a golf ball) covered with buckskin. Players propelled the ball with their feet toward the goal post which was a pole topped with a stuffed eagle in a nest. They played the ball game in the spring and summer, and dedicated it to the gods of rain and thunder to ensure rain for their crops.

One characteristic of precolumbian Apalachee society was their large ceremonial mounds. Some of the mounds had structures on top, and it is generally believed that the largest mound within a complex was the site of the chief’s house. Lake Jackson was the Apalachees’ capital and preeminent mound center in late prehistoric times.

An expedition led by Pánfilo de Narváez in 1528 was the first group of European explorers to make contact with the Apalachees. Narváez came to the Tallahassee area searching for gold on the advice of Indians in the Tampa Bay (probably the Calusa) area where he landed. More than a decade later, in 1539, Hernando de Soto wintered in Apalachee Province. His expedition members stayed in the sixteenth century Apalachee capital village called Anhaica. Both groups of Spanish intruders received a hostile reception and were under almost constant attack from the Apalachees. The European presence eventually took its toll on the Apalachees from continual skirmishes and, eventually, diseases that were introduced by the explorers.

Ayavalla

Ivitachuco

San Marcos

San Juan

Santa Cruz

San Luis (1718)

Soledad (1718).

Resourses: Papers: Consult Barcia Ensay 1723; Sibley, Hist. Sketches, 1806; Shea, Catholic Missions, 1855; Gatschet, Creek Migr. Legend, I, 1884.

Apalachee