Long before European contact in the 1600s, tribes of the Confederacy established settlements along the Patuxent River, where village locations were chosen for their suitability for fishing, planting, gathering, hunting, and trading, enabling communities to sustain themselves. Over time, large semi-permanent villages developed, each partially self-sufficient but still connected to others through marriage, trade, and politics. Several villages along the Patuxent River appeared on Captain John Smith's 1608 map of his explorations of the Chesapeake Region. Woodland tribes became efficient caretakers of local natural resources, understanding the cycles of the rivers and lands that provided abundant fish, shellfish, and edible plants. Through trade and communication they cultivated and harvested many kinds of plants and vegetables, including corn, beans, and squash, and the development of pottery allowed villages to store and control food and seed supplies from season to season.