CASABO OF SOUTH CAROLINA

THIS TRIBE WAS A HISTORIC TRIBE ALONG THE ATLANTIC OCEAN. THEY LIVED BETWEEN CHARLESTON AND THE SAVANNAH RIVER BY THE TIME THE ANGLOS MET THEM. THEY CALLED THEM SETTLEMENT INDIANS. AT LEAST FIVE OF THE TRIBES APPEARED TO SPEAK A COMMON LANGUAGE. CHARLESTON BEGAN IN THE 11TH CENTURY, THE CUSABO BEGAN A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COLONISTS THROUGH THE EARLY 18TH CENTURY. AFTER THE YAMSEE WAR OF 1712 SURVIVING MEMBERS JOINED THE CREEK AND CATAWBA.

IN THE 1930'S AN ANTHROPOLOGIST THOUGHT THEY SPOKE MUSKEGAN LANGUAGE. HOWEVER, MORE RECENT RESEARCH DISPUTES THIS. THEIR LANGUAGE IS UNKNOWN AND IT IS EXTINCT. THEY LIKELY SPOKE A LANGUAGE SIMILAR TO THE CUSABOAN ONLY A FEW WORDS WERE RECORDED BY 9 FRENCH EXPLORERS IN THE 1950'S. ABOUT 100 PLACE NAMES AND 12 PERSONAL NAMES HAVE SURVIVED IN CUSABO WORDS. THE PLACE NAMES DO NOT SEEM TO BE RELATED TO OTHER SIOUAN LANGUAGES. SOME FOLKS THINK THE COAST MAY BY THE INDIGENOUS PEOPLES OF THE CARIBBEAN ISLANDS.

THE NAMES OF SUBTRIBES OF THE CUSABO AND CATAWBA MAY BE RECOGNIZED AMONG THE PROVINES DISCRIMINATED BY THE SPANISH IN 1520. THE ENGLISH COLONY OF SOUTH CAROLINA WAS FOUNDED WITHIN CUSABO TERRITORY. A LOOSE GROUP OF TRIBES CLOSELY RELATED. DURING THE FOUNDING OF CHARLES TOWN IN 1670 THERE WAS CONFLICT BETWEEN THE CUSABO AND NEW COLONISTS. THE CUSABO SUBTRIBE CAME INTO VIOLENT CONFLICT AND CAROLINA DID WAR AGAINST THEM IN 1671. THE CUSABO HID FROM THEM BUT REMAINED IN THE AREA. SOUTH CAROLINA FORCED THE TRIBES TO CEDE LARGE TRACTS OF LAND. THEY REQUIRED THE CUSABO TO MAKE A SYMBOLIC TRIBUTE OF ONE DEERSKIN PER MONTH. ONCE THE YAMSEE WAR OF 1715 OCCURRED, THESE CAROLINA TRIBES WERE GREATLY REDUCED.

THE WESCO TRIBE WAS ONE OF SOUTH CAROLINA INDIANS MOST POWERFUL ALLIES. IN 1670'S THE COLONISTS CONDUCTED MANY LARGE RAID ATTACKS ON THE VILLAGES. THE WESCO WERE AN IROQUOIS TRIBE WHO MIGRATED HERE.

THEY DEMANDED THE WESCO TO CEASE ATTACKING THE SETTLEMENT ISLANDS. BY 1680 SOUTH CAROLINA AND THE CUSABO DESTROYED THE WESTCO. BY 1700'S THE CUSABO BECAME INTEGRATED INTO SOUTH CAROLINA'S SOCIETY. THEY WERE EXCHANGING TRADE GOODS, WEAPONS, AND MONEY. THEY HUNTED GAME AND SOLD MEAT TO COLONISTS. THEY WERE PAID TO CAPTURE RUNAWAY SLAVES. BY 1712 SOUTH CAROLINA GRANTED THE CUSABO PATAWANA ISLAND WHERE MANY WERE ALREADY LIVING.

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