Timucuan Friends

In 1564 at la Caroline, Timucuan Chief Saturiba's people aided the French colonists by bringing roasted maize, smoked lizards and other wild animals, roots used for food and medicine, and metals and minerals when they saw the French interest in them. Saturiba's men crafted a shelter so he could watch the colonists build their settlement, and when the French asked for help, he sent eighty of his strongest men to dig the fort's moat and gather palmetto leaves for thatching the colonists' houses. The Timucuans also shared gold and silver jewelry, pearls, animal hides, and medicinal plants, and their daily provisions kept some colonists from starving. In return, Saturiba sought a war alliance to help his people, but when that alliance never materialized, Timucuan assistance dwindled.

Jacksonville, Florida · United States