Appalachian Food: Pre-Columbian Period

A nomadic people, likely arriving from Asia, settled the Appalachian region some twelve thousand or more years ago, and they developed food traditions that continued until the Industrial Revolution. They ate mastodon and giant tortoise. They hunted, fished, and gathered. Then the earth warmed, the mastodon and tortoise died off. Their diet changed. About ten thousand years ago, native Appalachians ate white-tailed deer, turkeys, squirrels, and raccoons. They also enjoyed hickory nuts, black walnuts, acorns, grapes, berries, and persimmons.