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Have you ever wondered what was here before we enjoyed Collier’s Reserve, Naples and surrounding areas as a place to live, to golf and enjoy nature?
The first humans that reached Southwest Florida about 12,000 years were Paleo-Indians. The earliest archaeological evidence of man was discovered in 1980 at the Bay West Site in Collier County, northeast of Naples. These Paleo-Indians survived by hunting prehistoric animals such as woolly mammoths and giant tortoises, and collecting fruits and other edible plants.
Paleo-Indians were the ancestors to the Calusa Indians. These Indians controlled most of south Florida. Its leaders exercised a limited political dominance over other widely scattered small tribes and collected tribute from many of them. The population of this tribe may have reached as many as 50,000 people. At the time of discovery, best estimates put the population at 2000 people living in thirty villages ranging in size from ten to two hundred people.
The Calusa lived on the coast and along the inner waterways. They built their homes on stilts and wove Palmetto leaves to fashion roofs, but they didn't construct any walls. The Calusa Indians did not farm like the other Indian tribes in Florida. Instead, they fished for food on the coast, bays, rivers, and waterways. The men and boys of the tribe made nets from palm tree webbing to catch mullet, pinfish, pigfish, and catfish. They used spears to catch eels and turtles. They made fish bone arrowheads to hunt for animals such as deer. The women and children learned to catch shellfish like conchs, crabs, clams, lobsters, and oysters.
The Calusa are considered to be the first "shell collectors." Shells were discarded into huge heaps. Unlike other Indian tribes, the Calusa did not make many pottery items. They used the shells for tools, utensils, jewelry, and ornaments for their shrines. Shell spears were made for fishing and hunting.
Shell mounds can still be found today in many parts of southern Florida. Environmentalists and conservation groups protect many of these remaining shell mounds. One shell mound site is Mound Key at Estero Bay in Lee County. Its construction is made entirely of shells and clay. This site is believed to be the chief town of the Calusa, where the leader of the tribe, Chief Carlos lived.
A Brief History of Collier County and Naples
Early Beginnings
COLLIER'S RESERVE COUNTRY CLUB