Plains Native Americans
This region stretched from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains, from Canada to Texas.
Land and Climate
The land is flat and very grassy, with not many trees. There were lots of wild flowers. There are some hills. There are many rivers and streams in this region. On the west is the edge of the Rocky Mountains.
It can be very cold in the winter, with lots of snow. In the summer, it gets very hot. It doesn't rain a lot in the plains, but when it does, it is usually a downpour.
It can be very cold in the winter, with lots of snow. In the summer, it gets very hot. It doesn't rain a lot in the plains, but when it does, it is usually a downpour.
Shelter
Most Native Americans in this region lived in tepees. Tepees were easy and quick to build. They are cone-shaped houses. To make a tepee, the Native Americans would build a circular frame out of wooden poles. Then they would cover the outside with bison hides. They usually decorated the outside of the tepee with paintings. The floor was just the earth below, and a family fire was in the middle to cook and keep it warm.
Native Americans in this region would move their camp to follow the buffalo herds, and so tepees were easy to take down, move, and put back up again when they got to their new camp. A village could pack up the entire village to move in less than an hour! When they would move their tepees, they would tie it to the back of a horse to carry it.
Native Americans in this region would move their camp to follow the buffalo herds, and so tepees were easy to take down, move, and put back up again when they got to their new camp. A village could pack up the entire village to move in less than an hour! When they would move their tepees, they would tie it to the back of a horse to carry it.
Food
Bison was the main food for the Plains Native Americans. Bison meat was hard to keep fresh, so they usually dried it and ate it like jerky. They also hunted other animals, such as deer, moose, elk, black bears, rabbits, coyotes, wolves, gophers, and birds. They collected wild fruit, seeds, nuts, and berries. The Plains Native Americans ate vegetables such as wild potatoes, maize (corn), onions, radishes, and cactus.
Transportation
Before the Europeans brought horses to North America, the Plains Native Americans usually walked from place to place. Sometimes they would use dogs to help them carry large items. The dogs would pull the load behind them. When Native Americans got horses from the Europeans, they used the horses to carry their things instead of dogs. In the winter, the Native Americans in the Plains region used snowshoes.