(Source of picture: Florida State Archives)

CLICK HERE FOR A PICTURE OF FOOD ON A GRILL

When times were good, they were very good.  This busy picture shows alligators & other game on the grill, baskets bulging with edible plants, and an armful of large fish.  Perhaps these Timucua would've agreed with the old TV commercial:  Life doesn't get any better than this.  (And they probably would've gotten a good laugh about the picture's mountains, too.)

TIMUCUA CHOW -- Daily Timucua life centered on the hunting & gathering of food. Near and along the coast, early Floridians gathered edibles, such as berries and oysters.  The also hunted & fished.  In addition, they farmed on a limited basis, growing corn, beans, squash, pumpkins, and sunflowers. 

The Timucua feasted on a smorgasbord of food, when it was available.  Consider what they ate.  How many of the following things might you enjoy today? 

LAND ANIMALS -- Deer, bears, raccoons, opossums, squirrels, rabbits, minks, foxes, skunks, cotton rats, tortoises, snakes, and terrapins

WATER ANIMALS -- Both fresh & saltwater creatures, including alligators, seals, frogs, turtles, dolphins, sharks, mud eels, clams, crabs, crayfish, oysters, shrimp, and beached pilot whales

BIRDS -- Ducks, geese, swans, and turkeys

PLANTS & TREES -- Corn, beans, pumpkins, cucumbers, peas, squash, sunflowers, cherries, blueberries, blackberries, mulberries, muscadine grapes, plums, persimmons, acorns, hickory nuts, onions, clover, wild garlic, bay leaves, dandelion leaves, mushrooms, prickly pears, pig weed, wild rice, pine needles, goldenrod flowers, yaupon holly leaves, sabal palm & palmetto berries, sabal palm hearts, and sap from maple and hickory trees

From all of these plant products, the Timucua prepared jellies, teas, gum, bread, fritters, dumplings, grits, seasonings, sweets, raisins, and prunes.

EASTSIDE & WESTSIDE -- On the east side of the St. Johns River, Timucua villages stood in an area of generally sandy soil.  This wasn't very conducive to raising crops.  Therefore, gardens tended to be smaller, and Indians depended more on gathering wild plants.  The Timucua villages on the west side of the river, however, benefited from a richer soil.  They found it easier to grow their food.