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Though the Creek Indians inhabited the Pee Dee River Valley area for only a hundred years, their dynamic culture left its imprint there. Under the influence of the Lamar culture, these migrants brought with them characteristic patterns of living. In time those customs and traditions were lost or modified; the artifacts and burial and ceremonial customs which are seen today at Town Creek represent the "Pee Dee" culture--after the river area settled by these people.
The Creeks settled in large villages which they built along the banks of the river and its tributaries, each village surrounded for protection by stockades of pine poles with watchtowers placed at the-entrances. They lived in dome-shaped structures covered with straw. These homes and villages were permanent, located close by the fields which were the Indians' primary source of life. Here they cultivated corn, beans, squash, gourds, pumpkins, and sunflower seeds. Corn was the most important crop grown, in addition to being a basic food, many of the religious ceremonies of the settlers centered around corn and corn gods. Tobacco, too, was grown for use in ceremonial pipes. Significant sources of food naturally were the streams and woodlands, where the Indians fished and hunted for a wide variety of animals. Clothing was made from hides and cloth woven from plant fibers, opossum hair, or fine feathers.
The daily life of the people included a variety of activities. In addition to those chores associated with the cultivation of crops, hunting, and preparation of food, much time was spent in making houses, cribs for food storage, canoes for travel, drums for ceremonies, and weapons used for war or hunting. Leisure hours were spent playing stickball, chunkey, or other games.
Women tended the fields, cared for children, made pots, baskets, clothing, and mantles of hair or feathers. They visited with friends and relatives and even participated with the men in a simple version of stickball. Children who were old enough helped their parents, learning the skills and knowledge needed to become useful members of the tribe.
Each of the Creek towns had its important center where matters of significance were discussed by tribal leaders and where local governmental actions took place, such as trying and sentencing enemies and entertaining visitors.
The Creeks were a religious people. Religious expression was an integral part of daily activity: bathing in the river each morning, prayers offered prior to the killing of a deer or the planting of a seed, and ceremonies held in the temple at night. Religious life was presided over by four priest-chiefs, considered to be the most important men in the tribe.
Many customs developed surrounding the occurrence of death. The deceased were prepared for burial by relatives who, after washing and painting the bodies, wrapped them in hides or cloth. They were buried in circular huts or mortuaries; the bodies were placed in shallow pits lined with cane matting or bark. More of the same material was used to cover each body to keep out the earth. Infants were often buried in large clay urns; not wanting the dead child to be trapped in a "live" clay urn, the Indians would ceremonially "kill" the urn by knocking a hole in its bottom. These urns were often covered with large bowls to keep out the soil. Various articles, such as beads, tools, and pipes, were sometimes buried with the dead; often a medicine bundle, consisting of items believed to possess magical powers, was included with the deceased to facilitate the journey into the hereafter.
The Town Creek Ceremonial Center
High on a bluff overlooking the juncture of Town Creek and Little River the Indians of the Pee Dee established a ceremonial center. Here people from every village converged for political, religious, and social activities. The Town Creek ceremonial center served as a place for discussion of matters of importance to the collective clans of the tribe, as well as the setting for important religious ceremonies and feasts often lasting several days. Here, too, the socially important dead were buried, enemies were ceremoniously put to death during celebrations of victory after battle, and exciting ball games between warriors of competing towns were played. There were no occupants living within the walls of the stockaded compound, except for the priests in charge.
The palisade surrounding the Town Creek center was constructed of upright logs interwoven with cane and small poles, plastered with a mixture of clay and straw. Entrance to the enclosure was gained through two protective towers, one on the north and one on the south, as well as via an underground passage from the river. The palisade served as a fortified refuge from the Siouan tribes in the area who sought to reconquer the lands of their ancestors. Within these protective walls, on a slight rise on the western side, stood the principal structure--an earthen mound constructed of dirt carried there in baskets on the backs of people from surrounding towns. The mound was built in stages. At first, there was a ceremonial earth lodge, which in time collapsed. More earth was placed on the mound, and upon this foundation a new rectangular structure was erected. When this building burned, a final mantle of earth was placed over it. Upon this last addition to the mound were found the archaeological remains of the third and last structure to be built--the major temple. The temple, which was the most important building within the enclosure, was thatched with bundles of grass. Inside, the mud-plastered walls were decorated with paintings. Seats were arranged around the inside wall; village chiefs and the bravest of the warriors sat here. The Creeks were sun worshippers who correlated the sun with fire; a fire laid in a pit at the center of the temple always was kept burning. Symbolically, each of the four logs on the fire faced one of the cardinal points of the compass. The temple contained an altar which held sacred objects used by the priests. A reconstruction of the major temple is located on the summit of the mound.
In front of the ramp leading to the top of the mound were four sheds facing each other and forming a square plot of ground between them. Known as the "square ground" this area was considered sacred, for on it dwelt the Talwa, or symbolic soul of the tribe. Each shed was decorated with symbols of the clans which occupied them, including carvings, paintings, scalps, and war clubs. Members of the clans were assigned places in the sheds, and seating was according to tribal rank or station. The men of the tribe met in this place to discuss and settle matters concerning politics and religion.
A large ball post used as a goal in a variety of games stood beside the square ground, the skull of a bear hanging from its top. Warriors from the villages formed competing teams and often would play strenuous ball games around the post in a demonstration of their strength and courage. The game contained elements of today's games of lacrosse, football, and soccer. Ball games were second only to warfare as a way in which a warrior could distinguish himself and gain honors.
Outside the ball grounds were round thatch-roofed huts where the dead were buried; other mortuaries were located near the square ground. Across the plaza, within a square compound next to the river, stood a minor temple, its basic form similar to that of the major temple. All ceremonial structures were rectangular, fashioned with walls of wattle and daub and roofs of thatch. Enclosed by a palisade of small logs, it served as a dwelling for the priests in charge of ceremonies. The minor temple, too, has been rebuilt where the original was located.
Ceremonies in the temple consisted of pipe smoking, feasting, drinking, singing, and entertainment, frequently lasting all night. Women were seldom allowed to take part in ceremonies in either the square ground or the temple; at times groups of them provided entertainment in the form of dancing. Prior to meetings in the temple, a sacred brew, known as the "black drink" was taken by the participants as a stimulant to the mind and body.
The Poskito, or renewal ceremony, was the most important of several ceremonies to be held in the square ground during the year. Known by the white man as the ceremony of the "busk," deriving from the Indian word meaning "a fast," it also was referred to as the "green corn ceremony," as corn played an important part in the ritual performed. The eight day celebration was held after the gathering of the first new corn crop, to mark the beginning the new year.
To prepare for the busk, Indians of the villages cleaned and swept their houses, sprinkling them with clean sand. They discarded old clothing, pottery, and implements, replacing those things with newly fashioned ones. The ceremonial center, too, was cleaned, and the temple and grounds repaired. All fires were extinguished. All debts and grievances were settled; all unpunished crimes except murder were forgiven. All was made ready to begin the new year with the eating of the new corn. During the first four days of the busk, people from the surrounding villages gathered at the Town Creek ceremonial center to take part in rituals of purification. These included ceremonial bathing, fasting, scratching the body with a gar fish tooth or sharp stone to expel evil spirits, and taking cathartic medicines. The most famous of these medicines, the black drink, was made from the leaves of the yaupon shrub. After the leaves were parched in pots and then steeped in boiling water, the resultant black liquid was served to participants in whom it induced violent vomiting, thus cleansing the individual of inner evil.
The second part of the busk was a period of feasting and celebration. It began with a ceremonial rekindling of the sacred fire; Indians returning to their villages at the close of the busk carried embers from the new fire with which to relight the hearths in their homes. It was because of this sharing of the new fire by all the tribal members that the Indians of the Pee Dee culture referred to themselves as "people of one fire". After the lighting of the fire, which signified the start of a new year, four ears of the new corn were offered to the spirits; eating of the new corn, which had been forbidden during the first part of the busk, was now allowed. At this time, the young men of the tribe who had reached and proven their manhood during the preceding year were given warrior names; they then were privileged to participate in all adult activities of the tribe, including making homes of their own.
Exploring the Remains of a Culture
Had it not been for scientific archaeology, the life of the Creek Indians of the North Carolina Piedmont would never have been known. There had been no written language in the Pee Dee culture; the only clues had come from writings of early North Carolina explorers and I ndian relics found i n the area. Following these clues, the Archaeological Society of North Carolina began, in 1936, a scientificstudy of Town Creek Indian Mound. Dr. Joffre L. Coe, Director of the Research Laboratories of Anthropology at the University of North Carolina, directed the archaeological investigation and reconstruction work. During the depression years, support for work on the project was provided by both state and federal agencies. In 1937, L. D. Frutchey deeded the mound and two adjoining acres of land to the state. State ownership now covers fifty- three acres, which includes the entire ceremonial center and a buffer area.
Through controlled excavation, comparative studies, analysis, and examination of early documents, archaeologists have uncovered the story of these invading mound builders from the South. The archaeologist is concerned with bits of evidence left by vanished people. From meager clues, he gains knowledge of the past, seeing in an arrowhead, a cooking pot, or posthole, evidence of a way of life. After carefully exploring the soil around Town Creek, examining it for artifactual evidence and u nusual mounds or depressions in the earth, the archaeologists would dig several small areas, working very carefully. Determinations of areas to be thoroughly excavated were based upon findings from these digs. Initial excavations exposed marks made by rotted posts and poles. Discolorations caused by filled pits or other soil disturbances were revealed.
A fifteen-foot moveable tower was constructed; from this tower a photograph of each section of cleared land was made. The photographs were then attached to large sheets of plywood, matching edges of photographed areas, resulting in an arrangement of photographs called a photomosaic. Examination of the photomosaics of Town Creek enabled archaeologists to work out a drawing outlining the foundations of buildings and stockade walls.
Variations in the hardness of the ground between postholes and surrounding areas made measurement of posthole depths and sizes possible. The use of different colors to indicate various sizes and depths on a drawing makes it possible to see the outlines of some structures more easily.
When the locations of particular structures were determined through the use of these various methods, choices were made as to which of these would be carefully excavated. Many of the Creek Indian villages that surrounded the Town Creek ceremonial center have been located by archaeologists. Much of the area at Town Creek Indian Mound has been excavated, including the mound itself, which has been rebuilt. The major temple on top of the mound, and the minor temple, or priests' house, have been reconstructed. To the side of the square ground a new ball pole has been erected in the original five-foot posthole. Many burials have been located, and some have been excavated; one of the burial huts has been rebuilt. The stockade wall surrounding the area has been placed on the location of the original. Reconstructions at the center are based on archaeological data and early documents describing the material culture of the native people of the southeastern United States as seen by early explorers. As the story of the Town Creek center unfolds, new excavations are undertaken at the discretion of the archaeologists; with each dig new knowledge is gained. The Town Creek center will continue as an ongoing archaeological project.
Visitors to Town Creek are invited to the Visitor Center where they may view an introductory slide program before taking a tour of the mound itself. The exhibit area features special displays interpreting the way of life of the Indians at Town Creek. Official publications and other items of historical interest may be purchased here. Rest room facilities and site administrative offices are located within the center; there is an adjacent parking area. It is requested that groups interested in visiting Town Creek please make advance reservations.
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