When Did the Calusa Tribe Die?

By the late 1700s, the Calusa had died out. Diseases such as smallpox and measles were brought into their territory from European explorers, which wiped out entire villages. Many Calusa were captured and sold as slaves.

Are there any Calusa people left?

There are probably people of Calusa descent still alive today. Some Calusas were sent to Cuba as slaves by the Spanish in the 1500's, and others traveled there voluntarily during the epidemics and turmoil of the late 1600's and early 1700's. Their descendents may still be living in Cuba today.

Where is the Calusa tribe today?

The Caloosahatchee culture inhabited the Florida west coast from Estero Bay to Charlotte Harbor and inland about halfway to Lake Okeechobee, approximately covering what are now Charlotte and Lee counties. At the time of first European contact, the Caloosahatchee culture region formed the core of the Calusa domain.