Where did Indians like to live?
Native Americans had distinct preferences for certain habitats, likes and
dislikes that changed over time. Before agriculture, the most important criteria
were access to game animals, plant foods and the availability of fresh water. As they
adopted maize (corn), squash, beans and other crops, soils became more important
– especially fertile soils that warmed early in the spring, allowing early planting and a
longer growing season.
Kent County
Chesapeake Bay
But even when Indians used agriculture, they still relied upon many natural
foods. For this reason, the most important factor in deciding where to live was the
amount of “ecological diversity.” The more and varied types of plants and animals
available, the better.
Other factors behind settlement pattern included access to easy
transportation (by water or along ridges) and defense from enemies.
Archaeologists can use all of these factors to “predict” where Indian village
and other sites were. On the Eastern Shore, 10 major kinds of locations were most
prized.
Favorite places to live
 Point Focus – settlement on points of well-drained land, usually surrounded
by water.
 Cove Focus – settlement around small estuarine coves or creeks
 Converging Stream Focus – settlement on knolls or terraces above the
confluence of freshwater streams.
 Springhead Focus – settlement around active freshwater springs.
 Interior Stream Focus – settlement on ridges or terraces along freshwater
drainage systems.
 Sand Ridge Focus – settlement along well-drained sandy ridges, usually
aeolian in origin.
 Bay Basin Focus – settlement along well-drained rims surrounding shallow,
poorly drained depressions.
 Estuarine Wetland Focus – settlement on knolls or ridges adjacent to or
within broad marshes.
 Rivershore Focus – settlement on high ground along the major tributaries of
the Chesapeake Bay, such as the Sassafras and Chester Rivers.
 Bay Island Focus – settlement on islands in the Chesapeake Bay; once part of
the mainland, they were separated and turned into islands through marine
transgression.
Queen Anne’s County
Chester River
Archaeological predictive model
This model for Native American site locations was developed by archaeologists at Washington college, using the variables outlined in the text boxes to
the left. Using computer mapping and Geographic Information Systems (GIS), information on soils, topography, access to water and many other factors can be
mapped and probable site locations predicted. The model covers Cecil, Kent, Queen Anne’s, Caroline, and Talbot Counties.
Red areas denote areas of extremely high probability – this is where Indians most liked to live. Brown denotes high probability, and green moderate
probability. People camped in, hunted in and travelled through other areas, but they were less likely to spend lots of time there.