The Plains Indians - Way of Life

Test yourself

Plains Indians - Food, Travel & Shelter

The buffalo was integral (very important) to Plains Indians' lifestyles.

Why did Buffalo matter to the Indians?

Buffalo is also known as American bison. They are large, hairy and can weigh up to 1,000kg.
Buffalo meat was the main food source for the Indians.
However, the Indians could also use Buffalos' skin (hide) to make clothes for the band and for the interior design of their tipis.

Where did the Plains Indians live?

The Plains Indians lived in an area of America called 'The Great Plains'.
This strip of land runs the length of the USA from the border of Canada to the border of Mexico. It is 2,000 miles long and 500 miles wide and contains the whole of the states of Nebraska, Kansas and North & South Dakota.
The Great Plains are very exposed to the elements, without much shelter from trees. It could be very hot and dry in summer, but freezing cold in winter.

The Great Plains

What did the Plains Indians live in?

The Indians lived in wooden tipis. These were made of wooden sticks pointing inwards, covered in animal hides (probably from Buffalo).
Tipis could be quickly put up and taken down, and easily packed onto a horse.
The Indians were 'nomads' meaning they didn't live in a single place. They would set up camp for a few days and then move onto a new location.
Often the Indians would follow herds of Buffalo around the Great Plains and would go wherever the Buffalo's seasonal migration patterns would take them.

Transport

Horses were the vital transport for the Plains Indians.
The Plains Indians were nomads and moved across the Great Plains throughout the year.
Horses could travel long distances, the Indians could ride them, and the horses could carry heavy weights (all of the Indians' possessions).
The Indians' clothes and meals relied on Buffalo. Riding horses was the best way to kill and capture Buffalo.
Having lots of horses was a sign of success for an Indian band or tribe.

The Plains Indians - Land, Nature & War

White American settlers and the Plains Indians had dichotomous (very different) beliefs about land, nature, and war.

Nature

Indians thought that all things in the world had a 'spirit'.
Chiefs and elders also believed that spirits could talk to them through 'visions'. They would make decisions based on these visions.
Indians would do an annual 'Sun Dance' to communicate with spirits.
The Eagle and Buffalo were 2 things in nature that were particularly sacred to the Indians.

Land

Many White American settlers came from Britain. British law has always valued property rights and land ownership very highly.
The Indians did not believe in land ownership or land property rights. They thought that land was communal. Lots of nomadic tribes across the world have this view.
Different bands also had areas that were particularly special to them. The Sioux tribe thought that the 'Black Hills' were sacred and possessed by important spirits. However, White Americans would later build Mount Rushmore in this sacred territory.

Illustrative background for War ?? "content

War

The Indians had a nomadic approach to war. They often rode on horseback and although there was lots of fighting between Indians, they would often flee, rather than fighting.
This made fighting against the Indians more like guerrilla warfare, than traditional warfare as they were always moving around.

1The Early Settlement of the West, c1835-c1862

1.1The Plains Indians: Beliefs & Way of Life

1.1.1The Plains Indians - Social Structure

1.1.2The Plains Indians - Way of Life

1.1.3End of Topic Test - Social & Tribal Structures

1.1.4Grade 9 - The Plains Indians

1.2Migration & Early Settlement

1.2.1The Oregon Trail & Gold Rush

1.2.2Manifest Destiny

1.2.3Major Migrations - Donner, Mormon & Farmer

1.2.4End of Topic Test - Migration and Early Settlement

1.2.5Grade 9 - The Early Settlement of the West

1.3Conflict & Tension

1.3.1Fort Laramie Treaty & Indian Appropriations Act

1.3.2Lawless Towns

1.3.3End of Topic Test - Conflict & Tension

2Development of the Plains, c.1862–c.1876

2.1The Development of Settlement in the West

2.1.1Causes of the American Civil War

2.1.2The American Civil War

2.1.3Homesteading & Railroads 1862-1876

2.1.4Continuing Law & Order Problems 1862-1876

2.1.5Ranching, Cattle & Cowboys 1862-1876

2.1.6End of Topic Test - Development of the Plains

2.2Changes in the Way of Life of the Plains Indians

2.2.1Impact of Railroads & Settlers 1862-1876

2.2.2Impact of the Peace Policy & Reservations

2.2.3The Indian Wars (1862-1868)

2.2.4End of Topic Test - Changes in the Way of Life

2.2.5Grade 9 - Development of the Plains

3Conflicts & Conquest, c.1876–c.1895

3.1Changes in Farming & Settlement

3.1.1Farming & the Cattle Industry 1876-1895

3.1.2The Exoduster Movement & Oklahoma Land Rush

3.1.3End of Topic Test - Exodusters, Land Rush & Cattle

3.2Conflict & Tension

3.2.1Billy the Kid, Wyatt Earp and the Range Wars

3.2.2Little Big Horn, the Ghost Dance & Wounded Knee

3.2.3Destroying the Indian Way of Life

3.2.4End of Topic Test - Conflict and Tension

3.2.5Grade 9 - Conflicts & Tension

Jump to other topics