Date published: 1922-01-01
Source: Early History of the Creek Indians and Their Neighbors (ID121)
Author: Swanton, John (ID85)
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Race described: Indian
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Content id: 2335
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1702-03-09 - 1702-03-09

Iberville visited the Tohome and Mobile settlementsedit

Five days later Iberville left to visit the Tohome, and he gives us the following account of his trip: "The 9th I left in a felucca to go to the Tohomes. I spent the night five leagues from there; one finds the end of the islands three leagues above the post. From the post I have found almost everywhere, on both sides, abandoned settlements of the savages, where it is only necessary to place settlers, who would have only canes or reeds, or roots, to cut in order to sow; the river, above the islands, is half a league wide and five to six fathoms deep. "The 10th I spent the night with the Tohomes, whom I found eight leagues distant from the post, following the windings of the river. The first settlements, called [those of the] Mobiliens, are six leagues from it. These two nations are established along the two banks of the river and in the islands and little rivers, separated by families; sometimes there are four or five and sometimes as many as twelve cabins together. They are very industrious, working the earth very much. The greater number of their settlements are inundated during the high waters for from eight to ten days. The village of the Tohomes, that is to say of the Little Chief, where there are about eight or ten cabins together, is at about the latitude of 31 degrees 22 minutes. "They have communicating trails from one to another; that place may be six and a half leagues to the north a quarter northeast from the post. Following the rising grounds one comes easily to these villages; it would be easy to make wagon roads; one can go there and return at present on horseback. The ebb and flow come as far as the Tohomes when the waters are low. According to the number of settlements, which I have seen abandoned this river must have been well peopled. These savages speak the language of the Bayogoulas, at least there is little difference. There are in these two nations 350 men."1 (Swanton)

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