The Caddo Federation of Indians
The southeastern part of Oklahoma, the southwestern part of Arkansas, the Northwestern half of Louisiana and the Northeastern part of Texas was Caddo land, and claimed by the Caddos as their hunting ground. The Caddos were traders and developed trade-routes. Many of the highways of today follow the Caddo trails of yester-year, such as El Camino Real, that portion from the Trinity River in Texas to Natchitoches, Louisiana.
When the Caddo Nations split they settled themselves as follows:
1. The Attaquopois, at the confluence of the Kiamechi River and the Red River in southern Oklahoma.
2. The Caddoquopois or Caddo proper remained on the Red River near Fulton, Arkansas.
3. The Peticaddo on Caddo Lake hear Shreveport, Louisiana.
4. The Koasatti near Coushatta, Louisiana.
5. The Destonies on Saline Bayou near Winnfield, Louisiana.
6. The Yatasse on Nantanchie Lake near Montgomery, Louisiana.
7. The Natchitoches on the Red River at Natchitoches, Louisiana.
8. The Adais near Robeline, Louisiana, on a large lake now called Spanish Lake.
9. The Ais at San Augustine, Texas.
10. The Nacogdoches at Nacogdoches, Texas.
11. The Hasinai consisting of four tribes on the Trinity River in Texas, referred to by the Spanish as the Tejas (some historians classify them as Caddos. They spoke the Caddo language).
The Ais Indians had as their neighbors to the west the Hasinai federation of Indians which was composed of four tribes: The Nacogdoches at Nacogdoches; the Bidais, the Nasoni and the Nabidache, the latter three were located on the Trinity River.
Such was the situation when the first aliens came in contact with the Caddos.
II
SOME EARLY HISTORY
In his book, “La Relacion que Dio Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca delo Acaescido unlas Indias”, De Vaca writes in the year 1530 that “we were among the Adayes (Adais), the others were Juan Castillo, Andrea Dorantes and Estabancio of Azmor who was a slave of Dorantes.” These four survivors were of 300 of the Panfilio Narvez expedition that went into Florida in 1528.
Narvez’s expedition, beaten by the Apalache Indians, unable to return to their ships, killed their horses, ate the meat, used the hides to make bellows and water casks; they forged their armor and weapons to make tools and nails, then constructed four boats. They skirted the coasts of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana, foraging for food. During a storm the boats were wrecked, four survived to become slaves of the coastal Indians.
De Vaca and his companions became traders and medicine men. Meanwhile they learned to live off the land as the Indians did. They planned and successfully escaped.... And now they were among the Adais seeking directions. They were the first white men to travel westward over the Buffalo Trail. They wandered ever westward and finally found a Spanish patrol from Mexico.
De Vaca was the only one of the three hundred to return to Spain and even before he published his book in 1542, he had inspired the Hernando DeSoto expedition into Florida with his story of the City of Cibola, a city built entirely of gold.
Hernando DeSoto, the Golden Eagle, led the next expedition into Florida. Continuously harassed by the Appalachie tribes of Indians of the southeastern states he crossed the Mississippi and now in the year 1540 he marched into Louisiana, pillaging, raping and destroying. He was assisted by these trusting Lieutenants: Don Luis Moscoso, Don Juan de Anasco, Don Baltazarde Gallegardo, Don Juan Labillo, Don Carlos Chinquez, Juan de Quizman, Don Vasco de Procello, and Don Diago Vasquez, and these Captains: Espilando, Gallegardo, Maldamando, and Luis Fuentes. The Chronnicalor, Gonzado Quadrado Charmillo de Zafra who wrote (From the translations of B. F. French):
“We marched one day west from the Rio de Cannis in all this cold country this Wednesday, March 21, 1541, at the end of the day we came to a place called Toalli. All the Indians have houses built so, the houses are built of reeds in a manner of tules and daubed with mud which show as a mud wall, they are very clean and have a small door; when you shut it up and build a fire within it is as warm as in a stove.”[1]
Don Luis De Moscoso and a scouting party traveled westward over the buffalo trail as far as the Trinity River before returning to the Adais.
For the next hundred and forty years this area was devoid of white explorers.
By early 1682 Cavalier Robert de LaSalle had begun descending the Mississippi River accompanied by Henri De Tonty, the “Iron Hand”, and a party of other Frenchmen.
April 9, 1682, LaSalle discovered the mouth of the Mississippi River and established a plaque there, claiming all land drained by this river for the King of France, Louis XIII. He named this land LOUISIANA in honor of King Louis and Queen Anna.
Returning up the Mississippi near a location in the Illinois country at Starving Rock in that same year he established Fort St. Louis and left Captain Henri De Tonty in command.
LaSalle went to France and received assistance so that he could return and establish a settlement at the mouth of the Mississippi River. Through erroneous navigation the expedition missed the mouth of the Mississippi River and traveled westward, landing at Matagorda Bay, and in the Texas country established another Fort St. Louis in 1685.
LaSalle, realizing that this area was not suitable for colonization, began land excursions in an attempt to reach Canada.
Father Joutel’s diary reveals that in January, 1687, he was with LaSalle, and a scouting party, were among the Nakassa Indians which resided on Nakassa Lake.[2]
In 1682 at Quaerataro, Mexico, The College of the Holy Cross was founded by Priests; Father Francois Hidalgo, Father Jose Diaz, Father Felix Isadore Espinosa, Father Nunez, Father Antonio de San Buenaventura Oliverez, Father Francisco Marino, Father Juan Parez, Father DeVaca, Father Salazar, Father Massinettes and Father Margil de Jesus, the last named, Father Margil de Jesus, being chosen as President of the College. These priests, so as to distinguish their work from the work of others called themselves Zatachinies, their purpose being to prepare others for frontier missionary duties. By 1684 they had succeeded in establishing missions south of the Rio Grande.
The most northern Spanish presidio at that time was Fort San Juan Bautista, located on the south bank of the Rio Grande near present day Eagle Pass, Texas. The land of the Coahuile Indians extended from present day San Antonio southward into the Monte Clova-Saltillo area of Mexico. The Matagordo area on the Gulf Coast was included in the land of the Coahuile.
Aside from the duties of the Spanish missions to spread the Catholic faith, they were also, in reality, observation and trading posts of the Spaniards. From one of these missions it was learned from an Indian who came to trade, that other white men had come out of the sea in large houses that floated on the waters of the gulf and had settled on the coast land.
On March 20, 1689, LaSalle was assassinated by some of his own men on a tributary of the Trinity River. Father Joutel reported the men responsible for the assassination were in turn killed by the Indians. The remnants of the party returned to Fort St. Louis and finding it deserted, retraced their journey into the Trinity River area.
Alonzo DeLeon and Captain Flores were leading a scouting patrol when they found Santiago Grislet, Jean Lavaschevque and two very young boys, the Tulon brothers, Roberto and Pedro. This Spanish patrol searched for the next two months for other Frenchmen, but not being successful, returned to Mexico.