First People  |   Woodland People  |   The Historical Era      

The Archaic Age  (10,000-2500 B. P.)

         By the time that the glaciers had completely left Wisconsin, receding far into the northern reaches of Canada,  new kinds of plants began to grow in the warming climate of what would one day become Outagamie County,  Wisconsin. Where there had been only low-lying tundra vegetation,  spruce and fir trees began to grow in the rich soil deposits of the glacial drift.  Still later tamarack, pine, oak, ash, linden and cedar appeared, creating the first forests across the land.  As the climate became drier large forests of deciduous trees took root in many parts of the state.   

            As the centuries passed, many of the great pre-historic mammals began to die out for reasons not yet completely understood by modern day scientists.   Species such as the mastodon, the mammoth, and the saber toothed tiger all became extinct, while new smaller species such as deer, elk, caribou and bear took their place.  The first people of this archaic age adapted  their ways of life to the changes in the environment where they lived.   They learned to build better shelters, and to make better tools and weapons.  These innovations allowed them to overcome the new challenges of their changing landscape. 

        For many thousands of years, the first people continued to live a nomadic life.  They hunted and gathered their way across Wisconsin.  Their travels were closely tied to the seasons.  During the warmer months,  they gathered into larger villages located near rivers and lakes.   Those that lived near the Fox River and Lake Winnebago, in present day Outagamie County, learned how to fish with spears, nets and  bone hooks.  The lines and nets were made from plant fibers.  The sturgeon, pike and other species of fish that they caught using these effective methods made up a large portion of their diet.  In the fall and winter, the First People broke up into small extended families once again, to hunt deer, elk and bear which were abundant in the nearby forests and prairies.  The gathering of roots, berries, tubers, nuts, and wild growing grains remained important supplements to their diet. 

            Sometime around 5000 B.P., the first people of Wisconsin learned how to make things with copper.  The tools and weapons they had made with stone were now made of this hard and durable metal.     Large deposits of copper existed along the southern shore of Lake Superior.  Nuggets of pure copper were picked up by the glaciers and spread throughout Wisconsin.   When the ice melted, there was copper among the glacial drift and debris.  The first people learned how to melt this copper in their fire pits and fashion it into much improved spearheads, knives, harpoons, fishhooks and awls.  Copper also was used to make ornaments and jewelry.   They eventually began to mine the copper from the original deposits along Lake Superior, and trade the things they made with it to other tribes throughout the region.  Archaeologists call this period of Wisconsin history the Copper Culture.  

The people of the Copper Culture often buried things made of copper with their loved ones when they died.  They  believed that the deceased would need these valuable possessions in their next life.  In 1953, an important discovery was made in nearby Winnebago County on the farm of Matt Reigh, which is located along the southern shore Lake Butte des Mortes.  The graves of 43 copper culture people, who lived 3000 years ago, were uncovered.  These graves contained copper artifacts.  A similar gravesite was discovered farther to the north in Oconto County in 1952.  

The Woodland People