Housing
There are many different types of Native American
homes. The type of home depended much on the area they lived and the lifestyle
that they followed.
Some tribes were nomadic and needed homes that could be quickly dismantled,
taken with them and erected again where needed, such as when following the buffalo.
Others were stationary and needed more permanent fixtures.
Below are a few examples of the different types of housing.
Wigwams or Wetus
Both terms mean 'house'. Wigwam from the Abernaki and Wetus from the Wampanoag. Both these tribes are members of the Algonquian nation and are from woodland regions.
These are relatively small houses reaching only some 8 - 10 feet tall in the centre. The frames are made of rough branches then covered with woven mats and birch bark sheeting. The structure is then held firmly in place by pieces of timber wrapped around the outside, adding extra strength and support.
They can vary in shape from domed to conical to rectangular.
Longhouse
Used mainly by the Iroquois. They were farming people and tended to remain in one area or village all their lives.
These homes were made in a similar fasion to the wigwam but on a much larger scale. They could measure some 150 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 20 feet high.
Inside they were seperated into different sections with mats and wooden screens and a second floor would be added to provide sleeping space for the large family groups that lived there. Up to 60 individuals from one clan could reside in each Longhouse.
Tipi's
Sometimes spelt Tepee or Teepee.
Tipi's were used by the Plains tribes who lived a nomadic existance following the buffalo herds. They needed to be quickly taken down and erected at the next stopping point. An entire village could be pulled down in just 1 hour!
Made of a wooden cone shaped frame and covered with buffalo hide. They were both warm and waterproof. As there were few trees on the plains the long poles were taken with them wherever they went along with the hides.
Grass House
Used predominently by the Southern Plains people such as the Caddo tribe. Here the temperature was warm and these made excellent houses.
They were made from wooden pole frames with long prairie grasses dried and threaded through the poles in layers.
These houses normally measured about 40 feet tall.
Wattle & Daub
Called 'Asi' by the Cherokee.
Used by the Cherokee and Cree these were permenent fixtures and required a great deal of time and effort to build.
Rivercane, wood and vines are weaved together into a sturdy frame and then coated in plaster. The roof is then thatched with grass.
Chikees
Also known as chickee huts, stilt houses or platform dwellings.
Used by the Seminole tribe predominantly in Florida where the climate is hot these dwellings were built on long strong poles and the platform raised several feet of the ground to prevent creatures such as snakes from getting in. The roof was then thatched with grasses.
On the rare occassions that it rains the Seminole would hastily cover the sides with tarpaulins made of hide or cloth to try and keep themselves dry and the thick poles would help prevent their homes from sinking in the marshy soil.
It wasn't deemed necessary to have permenent sides to these homes as the climate is usually hot and dry, even at night.
Adobe House
Also known as pueblos.
Used mainly by the Pueblo tribes of the Southwest these homes were complex multi-story buildings.
They were made from adobe (clay mixed with straw) and baked into large bricks or were of stones cemented together with adobe.
These huge complexes were home to many extended clans and were seperated into different compartments, or apartments. Many families continuing to live in these homes for many generations.
Earthen Houses
This is a very general term relating to navajo hogans, Sioux earth lodges and subarctic sod houses as well as pit houses of the the Plateau and West Coast.
Earthen houses made by different tribes had different designs, but all were semi-subterranean dwellings -- basement-like living spaces dug from the earth, with a domed mound built over the top (usually a wooden frame covered with earth or reeds.) Living partially underground has several benefits, especially in harsh climates as the earth offers a natural protection from strong wind and harsher weather.
Plank Houses
These were used by tribes of the Northwest Coast (from northern California all the way up to Alaska.)
Made from long, flat planks of cedar wood lashed to a wooden frame. These plank houses look rather similar to old European houses, but they didn't learn to build them from Europeans as this style of house was used on the Northwest Coast long before Europeans arrived.
Plank houses are good houses for people in cold climates with lots of tall trees.. And it was only the coastal tribes, who make their living by fishing, who went to the efforts of building houses like these.
Igloos
Or iglu.
These are built by the Inuit (Eskimos) of northern Canada. Not all Inuit people used igloos, some built sod houses instead, using whale bones instead of wooden poles for a frame.
Like a sod house, the igloo is dome-shaped and is slightly excavated, built with large blocks of ice set in a spiral pattern and packed with snow to form the dome.
Snow is a good insulator, and dense blocks of ice offer good protection against the arctic winds and freezing conditions. Often a fire would be built inside and the smoke allowed to escape from a small opening left at the top.
Brush Shelters
Temporary shelters only made when they were out camping in the wilderness.
A simple framework covered with branches, grass and leaves.
These were not very big structures and you could rarely stand up in one. They were used mainly as sleeping places.
They were ideal for tribes like the Apache who moved around frequently as they could be made from materials found to hand quickly and unlike the tipi's they didn't have to carry poles and coverings around with them.