Considering Urbanism at Mound Key (Caalus), the capital of the Calusa in the 16th Century, Southwest Florida, USA

Abstract

In 1566, Pedro Menéndez de Avilés arrived at Mound Key, the capital of the Calusa polity. What he saw there was unlike anything else he would encounter in La Florida, a capital teaming with people and complex architecture that was essentially a terraformed anthropogenic island constructed mostly of mollusk shells situated in the middle of Estero Bay. The Calusa literally raised this landscape—51 ha in area—from the sea and built a complex canal system to the capital’s interior. The capital and its outlying towns did not practice large-scale agriculture, but rather relied upon harvesting and management of aquatic resources. Here, I outline the nature of urban processes at the settlement. From this evaluation, I argue that there are many similarities between the settlement and other urban areas of research, particularly in other parts of the Americas. I explore how the occupants of Mound Key worked through some of the experiences of urban processes present via collective action, specifically regarding waste management, transparent governance, and sustainability.