The Santee Indian Tribe is one of South Carolina’s most historically significant Native American groups — part of the deep Indigenous heritage along the Santee, Congaree, and Cooper Rivers and the shores of Lake Marion. Here’s a detailed look at their history, culture, and modern legacy:
Origins and Early History
- Language and Affiliation:
- The Santee were part of the larger Sioux peoples of the Southeastern United States. Their language was closely related to that of the Catawba and Wateree tribes.
- Homeland:
- The Santee lived primarily along the Santee River Basin in central South Carolina — especially near modern-day Clarendon, Orangeburg, and Berkeley Counties.
- Villages were located near the confluence of the Santee and Wateree Rivers, a fertile and strategic area rich in fish, game, and trade routes.
- Lifestyle:
- The Santee were agrarian people, cultivating corn, beans, and squash and fishing in the Santee River. They also hunted deer, turkey, and small game.Their homes were wattle-and-daub huts, similar to other Southeastern tribes.
- First European Contact:
- Europeans first encountered the Santee Indians in the 1500s, by early Spanish and later English expeditions.
- By the 1670s, English colonists from Charleston had begun trading with them — exchanging deerskins and furs for weapons, tools, and cloth.
- Conflicts and Disease:
- Like many Southeastern tribes, the Santee suffered devastating losses from European diseases (smallpox, measles) and enslavement raids during the late 1600s and early 1700s.
- Yamasee War (1715–1717):
- The Santee allied with other tribes, including the Yamasee and Catawba, against English colonists in this major conflict.
- After the war, the Santee were largely dispersed — some killed, some enslaved, and others absorbed into nearby tribes such as the Catawba or Cheraw.
- The Santee River remains one of the state’s most prominent natural features.
- When Lake Marion was created in the 1940s as part of the Santee–Cooper hydroelectric project, many ancestral Santee sites — villages, burial grounds, and artifacts — were flooded beneath the lake.
- Archaeological studies conducted before the flooding recovered pottery, tools, and remnants of Santee settlements.
- Santee Indian Organization:
- Today, the Santee Indian Tribe is a state-recognized tribe headquartered in Holly Hill, South Carolina.
- Official recognition occured in 2006 by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs.
- They are distinct from the “Santee Sioux” of the Dakotas and other Siouan groups.
- Membership and Culture:
- The modern Santee community focuses on preserving heritage, language revival, and education about Indigenous culture.
- Members maintain traditional crafts, beadwork, storytelling, drumming, and powwow ceremonies.
- The tribe participates in inter-tribal events across the Southeast.
- Leadership & Programs:
- The Santee Tribe’s leaders have developed cultural education programs, youth mentoring, and tribal governance projects to strengthen their recognition and presence in the state.
- Tribal Symbolism:
- The Santee’s identity is tied to the river and cypress forests of the lowlands — representing life, sustenance, and continuity.
- Pottery and Basketry:
- Archaeological finds show intricate clay pottery and woven baskets using river cane and palmetto fibers.
- Spirituality:
- Their belief system centered on harmony with nature, with ceremonies tied to agricultural cycles and the river’s rhythm.
- Santee Indian Tribe web site
- South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs – SC Native American Affairs
- Local museums and archives:
- Santee Indian Mound and Fort Watson Site near Lake Marion (Clarendon County) — one of the best-known archaeological sites linked to the Santee people.
- Berkeley and Clarendon County historical societies have exhibits and records.
