Survival Skills of the North American Indians by Goodchild Peter

Author:Goodchild, Peter
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Published: 1999-09-22T04:00:00+00:00

Arrangement of tipi poles

The doubled cord between the smoke flaps was fastened along one of the remaining poles with “cross-gartering,” and the cover was lifted with this pole, draped over the frame, and fastened together with dogwood pins about the size of a pencil. Two shorter poles were inserted into the top corners of the smoke flaps.

The cover now hung loosely on the frame. The three foundation poles were moved further out and planted in holes dug a few inches into the ground, and then the other poles were moved out and planted, so that the hide was taut on the frame. Since the tipi tilted slightly backwards, the ground plan was not circular but oval, with its long axis from east to west.

The lining was fastened around the inside of the poles. Rainwater running down the poles was caught by the lining instead of dripping onto the floor. The lining also helped to keep the tipi warm, by deflecting the cold air currents brought in by the rising current of warm air above the fire.

If the tipi was new, a smoky fire of sagebrush or rotten wood was lit inside and left to burn for a day or two. The smoke impregnated the cover and ensured that it would remain pliable even after repeated soaking and drying.

Further east, on the Prairies, tipis were sometimes used in the summer, but the winter dwelling was the “earth lodge”. The sod was removed from the ground to provide a round pit about forty feet wide and a foot deep. Four heavy posts, notched at the top and about ten or fifteen feet long, were planted in the center to form a square ten feet wide, and four beams rested on their tops. A circle of twelve notched posts, each about six feet long, was planted just inside the circumference of the pit, and beams rested on the notches. A brace slanted down from the top of each of the six-foot posts to the edge of the pit, and slabs of wood were leaned against the entire circumference of this wall. A box-like entranceway of logs ran out from the side of the dwelling. The framework was completed by running logs, three or four inches thick, from the central beams to the wall, leaving a four-foot smoke hole in the center. The entire structure was covered with a layer of willow mats, a layer of grass, and a thick layer of earth.

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