Karankawa people

The Karankawa voyaged from place to place on a seasonal basis in their dugouts, made from large trees with the bark left intact. They travelled in groups of thirty to forty people and remained in each place for about four weeks. After European contact, canoes were of two kinds, both being called "awa'n": the original dugout and old skiffs obtained from the whites. Neither were used for fishing but for transportation only, and their travels were limited to the waters close to the land. The women, children, and possessions travelled in the hold while the men stood on the stern and poled the canoe. Upon landing at their next destination, the women set up wigwams (called ba'ak in their native language) and the men hauled the boats on the shore. Their campsites were always close to the shoreline of the nearby body of water.[4]

Their wigwams consisted of willow branches arranged in a circle, with the tops of the branches bent toward the center and interlocked in wickerwork. This wickerwork was fastened with deerskin. Upon this framework, the Karankawa lay deer, wildcat, panther or bear skins, again fastened with deerskin thongs.[4]

The next step was to make a fire. After European contact, the Karankawa begged for matches or tinderboxes from settlers; otherwise, they resorted to the traditional method of using their firesticks, which they always carried in a package of deerthongs. The fire was always made in the center of their dwellings and kept burning day and night. They used animal skins to sit and sleep on within their dwellings. Their household goods and utensils included wooden spoons, some clay vessels, fishbone needles, and fine deer sinew.[4]

The primary food sources of the Karankawa were deers, rabbits, birds, fishes, oysters, shellfish, and turtles. They supplemented their hunting with gathering food such as berries, persimmons, wild grapes, sea-bird eggs, prickly pear cacti, and nuts.[4]

Their food was always boiled in earthen pots or roasted. Although there were a lot of salt deposits nearby, the Karankawa used chile for seasoning their food. After European contact, the Karankawa also would mix flour with water, lay the dough upon a flat stone, and baked it on the open fire. They were fond of sweet coffee.[4]

The Karankawa seemed to manage to always get pure, freshwater, although the whites did not know where they obtained it, because the wells of the whites had a brackish taste.[4] [9]

The Karankawa spoken language was observed to be deeply guttural. Syllabic structure was vocalic, they doubled consonants and vowels, and often extended sentences beyond the supply of breath which they could command. They often abbreviated their words and spoke softly.[4]

They also possessed a gesture language for conversing with people from other Native American tribes.[4]

The Karankawa were noted for their skill of communicating with each other over long distances using smoke. The Karankawa could make the smoke of a small fire ascend toward the sky in many different ways, and it was as intelligible to them across long distances as their language. Their methods are unknown.[4]

The Karankawa had a specific way of conversing. They carefully repressed their breath while speaking; at the end of their sentences, they exhaled heavily, releasing the air they held back during speaking. Moreover, their expression was interpreted by Europeans as impassive, especially because they never looked at the person to whom they were speaking. Their pronunciation was very exact, and they ridiculed poor elocution by the whites who tried to learn their language. The Europeans described their general demeanor as surly and fatigued.[4]

They did not have a regular sleep schedule, but slept whenever they wished. They also ate and drank at all times of the day.[4]

Karankawa never communicated their native names to the whites. However, they all adopted English or Spanish names. Many men adopted American military epithets and Christian names, and they would change these frequently.[4]

Among the Karankawa there exists an in-law taboo. Once a man and his wife have become in the Karankawa sense, married, the husband and his children are now no longer allowed to enter the residence of his wife's parents nor can his wife's parents enter his or his children's home. These two groups are also no longer allowed to talk with one another and must never come face to face with one another. If there is the danger of coming face to face with one another both parties must avert their eyes and move away from each other. This taboo only seems to apply to the husbands and their children, most likely due to inconvenience on the wife's part as Karankawans are typically patrilocal.[11]

The Karankawa possessed at least three musical instruments: a large gourd filled with stones which was shaken to produce sound, a fluted piece of wood which the Karankawa drew a stick over to produce sound, and a flute which was softly blown.[4]

The Karankawa practiced hatchet-throwing, recreational brawls with knives, ball plays, and wrestling matches. No gambling or guessing games seemed to have developed among the Karankawa.[4] The Karankawa were also noted for their remarkable physical feats, such as continuing to fight after being wounded in battle, breaking ice with their bodies, and swimming in freezing water.[7]

Their skill most notable was that of archery. The Karankawa made their own bows and arrows, and were renowned for great skill whether standing on land, in calm waters, or in turbulent waters.[4]

Their bows were made of red cedar wood and they made them according to the height of each archer, reaching from the foot to the chin or eye. The bows were always kept in perfect repair. The arrows were about a yard long, tipped with steel and feathered with wild geese feathers.[4]

As well as using archery for hunting, the Karankawa engaged in archery as a recreational activity. They often shot at the mark or shot arrows perpendicularly into space. The shooting matches they held were lively and sportive. Many young men were able to split the previous arrow in the target in two from a distance of at least eighty feet.[4]

The groups of Karankawa were commonly led by two chiefs: a civil government chief with a hereditary succession in the male lines, and a war-chief, probably appointed by the civil government chief. No evidence of a confederacy, like that of the Caddo or Creeks, was found. The Karankawa were probably a loose-knit body living under separate chiefs only united by the common language and shared war expeditions.[4]

The ritual in order to become a chief has been studied by 18th-century Spaniards. They have stated that a selection starts from many candidates and each is injured by a comb created from the spines of a sea fish, long wounds being dug into their skin from the top of their head to the soles of their feet and then tied to a pole for several days to either emerge thin or emaciated and close to death. While this description can indeed be a ritual to choose a chief, a diary of Fray Gaspar Jose De Solis states that he suspects these rituals could simply be a puberty rite or an initiation ritual to a brotherhood.[12]

One aspect of the Karankawa culture was their recognition of three gender roles: male, female, and a third role taken on by some males and women. Males who took on this third role are called berdache (Karankawa: monanguia.) They generally took on female roles and activities in daily life, while playing a special role in religious rites. According to some accounts, the berdache also performed as passive sexual partners for other males.[13]

In the written accounts of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca it is mentioned that bride price and bride service is part of a Karankawa marriage. While the bride price is assumed to be the generalized system in the indigenous population found by Cabeza de Vaca where the groom gives gift to the parents of the girl he wishes to marry in order to secure their permission, the bride service is based on a ritual where the husband must give every morsel of food he managed to collect or hunt to his wife. His wife then delivers the bounty to her parents and in return is gifted food to give back to her husband. This ritual goes on for an unknown number of months, but when it is concluded the pair typically then engage in patrilocal residence. In terms of marriage, divorce is a common aspect typically only to marriages that have not created any children and is unlikely if children have been born from the marriage.[14] Between the husband and wife, no signs of fondness, intimacy, or special treatment were observed. The Karankawa reacted strongly and sometimes violently to Europeans interfering in marital or familial affairs.[4]

The Karankawa were said to have great compassion and tenderness for their children.[15][4] Children not able to walk yet were carried by the mother on the back, wrapped in a loop of skin.[4]

Many Europeans noted the sharp contrasts in appearance between Karankawa men and women. The women were described as plainer, shorter and of stouter build than the men. The men were very tall, of strong athletic build, and had coarse black hair. Most men wore their hair so long as to the waist. Their foreheads were mostly low and broad, and the heads larger than most whites. The men, in contrast with the women, had lithe builds and slender hands and feet. Their skin color was said to be lighter and closer to cinammon-colored than the women.[4] Both men and women were noted for their spectacularly white teeth, even elders.[4]

Forehead flattening was practiced for all Karankawa. As babies, a piece of cloth was applied first, then a thin board, and then a wadded cloth. Each of these tied to the head with a bandage and left to stay there about one year.[4]

The men wore a breech-clout of skins, while the women wore skirts of deerskin. Neither head-covers nor shoes were ever worn by the Karankawa. Some women of the tribe obtained European clothing occasionally, but would only tear them apart or wear them temporarily. European blankets were of greater use to the tribe, worn fastened to their bodies during cold weather and pinned with thorns. Both men and women wore a small bracelet of undressed deer skin. The children were left to roam undressed until they were about ten years old.[4]

The Karankawa had distinctive tattoos, notably: a blue circle tattooed over each cheekbone, one horizontal blue line from the outer angle of the eye toward the ear, three perpendicular parallel lines on the chin from the middle of the lower lip downward, and two other lines extending down from under each corner of the mouth.[4] Moreover, they were observed by sixteenth century explorers to have piercings of cane on the lower lips, nose, and other parts of the body.[16]

The woman in some tribes such as the Coco group also had a tattoo of concentric black circles from their nipple to circling their entire breast.[17]

Men, women, and children alike rubbed sharks' oil on their entire bodies regularly to deter mosquitoes effectively and to keep their skin soft and supple. Europeans who encountered the Karankawa were disgusted by the odor.[4]

The women wore no ornaments, while the men were seen with many ornaments. Men's long hair was braided and consisted of three strands. They inserted bright objects (e..g, ribbons, colored flannel). The women never braided their hair nor combed it regularly. The men wore necklaces of small shells, glass beads, pistachios, and thin metal disks on their throats (never on their chests). Rings were also worn by the men.[4]

Europeans knew limited information about the rituals of the Karankawa because the latter did not reveal the purposes of their actions or their beliefs.[4] When Joutel, an explorer and companion of Robert Cavalier de La Salle, questioned their religious beliefs, the Karankawa only pointed at the sky.[4]

At the full moon and after very successful hunting or fishing expeditions, the Karankawa traditionally held a ceremonial. After gathering around a central fire, they boiled a strong and bitter brew from the leaves of the yaupon tree and stirred it until the top was covered with a yellowish froth. This brew was shared and all the Karankawa drank freely. Although this brew was said to be intoxicating, Europeans did not notice any visible effects on the natives. One Native stood within the circle of men, wrapped up to his head in skins, and he bent over as he walked circled the fire. They chanted in chromatic ascending and descending tones, and all the Natives joined in the chorus. This ceremony would continue throughout the night.[4]

Other than this, only a few other rituals were observed, and their purposes are unknown. The Karankawa would stare at the sun when it disappeared into the sea, like some other native groups of the area. They would also smoke tobacco through their nostrils first to the north, then to the east, west, and south. They frequently whistled at certain times and apparently for some objective, but ultimately for unknown purposes.[4]

Portrait of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca.

In regards to special burial rites or rituals, the Karankawa seemed to be indifferent, and buried their dead at the site of their passing.[4]

According to some sources, the Karankawa practiced ritual cannibalism, in common with other Gulf coastal tribes of present-day Texas and Louisiana.[18][7][4][5]

Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, a Spanish conquistador who lived among the Karankawa for several years in the 1530 and wrote a memoir, made no mention of cannibalism except for ritualistic consumption of deceased relatives in the form of funeral ashes "presented in water for the relatives to drink." Cabeza De Vaca admitted that he and his fellow survivors had committed acts of cannibalism of their own, eating their dead in order to survive after shipwrecking off Galveston Bay. The Karankawa people were shocked at the Spanish cannibalism, which they found to be repugnant.[5] Whites never actually witnessed an act of cannibalism, and second and third-hand accounts are of disputed credibility.[15][7][4][5]

The Karankawa was distinctive in that they were one of the only tribes known to keep dogs. The Karankawan dogs, of a coyote-like or wolf-like species, accompanied the Karankawa on hunts, swims, and recreational activities.[7] The dogs were voiceless, with straight ears and fox-like snouts.[4]

Karankawa Indian campsite and burial ground historical marker located in Jamaica Beach on the west end of Galveston Island

In 1528, one of two barges put together by survivors of the failed Pánfilo de Narváez expedition to Florida struck aground at Galveston Island. Survivors, including Cabeza de Vaca, were cared for by the Capoque band of Karankawa.[19] From 1527, Cabeza de Vaca subsisted for seven years among the coastal tribes, making a living as a medical practitioner and occasional trader.[4] During his stay, de Vaca reported that a fatal stomach ailment reduced the Karankawa population by roughly one half; the nature and casualties resulting from this illness are unknown.[20] De Vaca reported that extensive trade occurred with inland groups as far as the extent of the entire length of the present-day United States. After the introduction of the horse by Spaniards, these trade networks strengthened.[16]

Henri Joutel, the companion of Robert Cavelier de La Salle on his last expedition in 1687, recorded several tribes living in the coastal area, including the Karankawa (which he spelled as Korenkake and Koinekahe).[5][4] His observations were that the Karankawa were peaceable rather than hostile. Upon their first meeting, Joutel reports that the Karankawa "demonstrated their friendship by putting their hands over their hearts, which meant that they were glad to see us."[7] He also noted that they possessed horses, which were undoubtedly obtained from the Spanish.[4]

When de La Salle stole some canoes from the Karankawa to sail up a river and establish Fort St. Louis, the Karankawas were enraged. When they heard of de La Salle's departure and subsequent death, they attacked about twenty French settlers left in the fort and massacred all but five. The survivors were forcibly tattooed and made to follow the Karankawa on their hunting and fishing expeditions; they were eventually rescued by a Spanish expedition in 1689.[5][4]

The La Salle venture stimulated the Spanish into active exploration and colonization of south Texas. A Spanish search for Fort St. Louis to check if the French had returned led to a skirmish between the Karankawa and the Spanish, and an establishment of hostilities between these two groups.[5]

In 1691, Captain Domingo Teran led a combined land-sea expedition to Texas to strengthen recently established missions and to search for French presence. Both expeditions were mismanaged and led to a temporary lapse in Spanish interest.[5]

However, continued French action encouraged the Spaniards to occupy the area of Matagorda Bay permanently.[5]

La Bahía del Espiritu Santo, a mission-presidio complex, was established in 1722 on the southern bank of the San Antonio river. At first, the Karankawa were not antagonistic to the Spanish. But in 1723, a skirmish occurred between the Spanish and Karankawa, after which the Karankawa moved away from the mission and became hostile. By 1727, the Karankawa depredations forced the mission-presidio complex to move inland to the Guadalupe river, where they remained until 1749. The Karankawa successfully reduced Spanish claim to the Texas coast.[4][5]

By the 1730s, the Karankawa and other native tribes of the Texas area were viewed by the Spanish as the primary obstacle to control of northern New Spain. In 1749, Jose Escandon was made governor and representative of the viceroy, appointed to conquer and settle northern Mexico and the region of Texas and to map, survey, and acquaint himself with the area and with the natives. He recommended that the mission of La Bahía should be moved because of native hostility and the unfavorable climate.[5]

A new mission, Mission Rosario, was established in 1754. It was in constant fear of revolt by the natives in the mission and often appealed to La Bahía for military aid. Overall, it was extremely ineffective as a spiritual and "civilizing" center. The Karankawa fled when subjected to any corporal punishment, and continued to enjoy the resources provided by the Spanish without being dependent on them.[5]

Over time, the Karankawa grew to speak Spanish with great fluency and adopted Spanish names for themselves to facilitate interaction with the whites.[5][4]

The late eighteenth century saw a revival of Karankawa resistance and strength. The Spanish began to see them as unable to be converted to mission life, and some began to scheme for their extermination. However, none of these schemes were carried out.[5]

In 1806, the Rosario mission was merged with that of Refugio. In 1830, Refugio and La Bahía del Espiritu Santo were secularized.[5]

While the Spanish tried to incorporate the Karankawa into their empire, the Karankawa engaged in purely economic terms with the English and the French, trading skins and deer for weapons (i.e., muskets, guns) and household goods.[5][4]

When Galveston Island was occupied by the pirate Jean Lafitte from 1817 to 1821, some of his men kidnapped a Karankawa woman. In response, about three hundred Karankawa moved in to attack. When Lafitte learned of their encampment and impending attack, he sent two hundred of his men, armed with two cannons to confront the Karankawa. After the Karankawa lost about thirty men, they retreated to the mainland, with the pirates in pursuit. On the mainland, a few more Karankawa were killed.[4][5]

Austin was introduced to the Karankawas via an encounter with a peaceful Coco tribe. After some talks and an exchange of tobacco and a frying pan, Moses Austin considered them good friends, but after a warning of Karankawas at the mouth of a nearby river, Moses wrote in his journal that Karankawas are universal enemies of man and cannot be befriended and must be removed in order for Anglo-American settlers to live in peace.[21]

Painting, "The Settlement of Austin's Colony," by Henry Arthur McArdle, in the House of Representatives chamber in the Texas Capitol. Stephen F. Austin is shown rallying his colonists against the Karankawa Indians around 1824, as an unnamed scout comes to the cabin door to sound the alarm.

In 1821, Moses Austin received the Austin land grant to settle 300 families between Galveston Bay and the Colorado River. The Karankawa sought to hinder their progress by killing settlers who were guarding the ship John Motley and by stealing their supplies. By 1825, settlers banded together to attack the Karankawa. Stephen Austin commissioned Captain Kuykendall to lead volunteers to expel them from the territory, which extended to the Lavaca river. They chased the Karankawa to Manahila Creek, where a Spanish missionary interceded on their behalf and made them promise to never again go east of the Lavaca. This promise was broken, however, and was met by disproportionate violence by the Texan colonists.[4][5]

During the Texan-Mexican war, some of the Karankawa served in the Mexican Army. They suffered greatly in the Battle of the Alamo of 1836, and the Texans retaliated heavily for their service.[4][5][7]

Chief Jose Maria's 19-year-old son, Walupe, was captured by the Mexicans and killed. His father came on board the ship of a Texan settler and announced his intent of revenge. However, he and the majority of his men were killed.[5] Antonio, who claimed he was the brother of Jose Maria, became chief after that. During his administration and afterward, the Karankawa population diminished significantly from disease, conflict with Europeans and infighting.[5]

By the 1840s, the Karankawa consisted of two groups: one settled on Padre Island, while the other applied to settle in the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. After being exiled from their homeland, the latter group reportedly plundered and stole; the Mexican government subsequently ordered troops to subdue them. General Avalos was ordered to move the Karankawa to the border of Tamaulipas and Nuevo León. The two states disputed over the Karankawa, and they were eventually returned to Reynosa. After continued robberies, the Karankawa were removed to Texas.[5][4]

In 1858, the judge of Rosario, Mexico, sent a message to the mayor of Reynosa that he had tried to arrest the Karankawa but they moved north of the American border beyond his jurisdiction. He added that Mexicans and Americans should work together for the Karankawas' arrest. Later that year, Juan Cortina made a surprise attack on the recently returned Karankawa and annihilated the last members of the tribe.[7][4][5] In a study on the Karankawa published in 1888, one interviewee "thought that some [Karankawa] may be still in existence, but could not tell where."[4]