Perhaps the saddest thing about the Calusa tribe is the fact that they have disappeared. This successful tribe that controlled most of Southwest Florida, and probably more lands, for at least hundreds of years, simply no longer exists. There are no Calusa reservations, nor are there even any people claiming to be of Calusa descent.
When I visit the historical sites in SW Florida and walk over the ancient shells mounds and along the routes of their now filled-in canals, the sad silence always gets to me. These places were once vibrant, healthy communities filled with people skilled in hunting and engineering. They mastered the Florida landscape with none of today’s machines or technologies.
Mound Key, once the home of the Calusa Kings, is one of the most striking examples. Unless you know what it is, it looks no different from an y of the other islands in Estero Bay. You can’t see the two large shell mounds, approximately 30 feet high, in the center of the island. In fact, the entire island is manmade. At some of the other sites, people have destroyed the Calusa shell mounds, using the sand and other fill materials for their own construction projects. Sadly, some of these mounds are barely noticeable as raised plots of ground.
I did love the quiet of Mound Key while walking on its trails. My son and I were the only ones on the island that day. I tried to imagine what it was like during the years when the Calusa Kings reigned. Some artist renditions show the island with the large King’s house on the highest point and little vegetation, but today the typical Florida saw palmettos, laurel oaks, and gumbos limbos cover every inch.
In 1763, the few remaining Calusa families and their king left Estero Bay and never returned. Some reports state they went to Key West and even as far as Cuba, but historians seem unanimous on reporting that most of the tribe died during this period. Other reports claim some of the Calusas joined the Seminole tribe and that their descendants were recognizable by their height. I do wonder if today’s advancements in DNA detection could identify people with Calusa blood. That would really be something.
Very moving to read this. It's great that you document this. I have to confess, I'd never even heard of the Calusa tribe. They say all civilisation come to an end. Makes one wonder how ours will fade away.