Between 1720 and 1730 early European explorers found a village of considerable size on the western side of what is now Cumberland, Maryland. It was called by the local folk Caiuctucuc. It sat at the junction of two streams, the Cohongaronta and the Caiuctucuc. Teepees and lodges lined the river bank along present day Green Street in western Cumberland.
Some time prior to 1751, the village was abandoned to the ever growing numbers of pale faced trappers and traders. Inhabited native American lodges were still scattered throughout the area and many other indigenous villages remained inhabited for a long time. Caiuctucuc had been a typical area village with a mixture of simple conical teepees and oblong lodges with a surrounding stockade for protection.
Forest land was held in common by the whole tribe. However, the cleared land around Caiuctucuc belonged to the villagers, with each family allotted a portion. Corn, beans, tobacco, melons and gourds were grown in that fertile river clearing. Each local village was commonly ruled by a chief or king with absolute power who inherited his position by lineage through his mother. So, when he died, either a brother, or sister's son inherited his position.
The tribal council was commonly formed of the chief, his second in command (a warrior general) and a medicine man. The medicine man was a mixture of pastor and doctor, a very important position in a superstitious society that did not have the advantages of modern medical knowledge. On the other hand, their culture had many advantages of simplicity and family unity which imported European civilization seems to have since lost.
Smoking was not the vice it is among modern Americans. It was more or less seen in a religious sense, with each person sharing a few puffs before passing along the pipe. They drank nothing but water, occasionally sweetened with maple sap, until alcohol was introduced by European settlers, often with negative results.
Marriage among the local people was commonly between older teenage boys and younger teenage girls. Babies were highly protected and especially cared for by being lovingly swaddled on a board and carried on the back.
About 1750, pioneers resettled and renamed the village Will's Creek after a nearby native American chief. Chief Will lived on top of Will's Knob, a mountain to the north of Caiuctucuc. He claimed all the land in the area, but gladly sold large portions to the immigrants at little cost. Unlike many of his kinsman, Chief Will did not move west to escape the white man, but accepted his presence gracefully.