History refers to the time period for which we have written records and accounts; prehistory is the time period that precedes history. Our understanding of prehistory is dependent upon people like archaeologists who can interpret past cultures without the use of written records, since the native peoples of North America did not have a known system of writing.

In Kentucky, the historical period began with the arrival of the Europeans around A.D. 1650. The Contact Period refers to the time when European settlers first came into contact with the native inhabitants of the place we now call Kentucky. The first Europeans and Americans to enter the lands that were to become Kentucky found comparatively few native peoples. These peoples were members of several tribes, most notably the Shawnee. Unfortunately, there is a significant gap in our knowledge of the cultural developments that took place during late prehistoric times and the events that occurred during the early Contact period. Not long after the first contact, European epidemic diseases had a devastating effect on native peoples. Colonial expansion further disrupted and displaced native populations. Warfare contributed to additional reductions in the numbers of native peoples and the eventual loss of their land.