The Wichita Indians shared the Great Plains, in the central United States, with a variety of animals, including millions of bison, elk, and birds. The Wichita built their homes of poles and prairie grass, which grew up to 12 feet tall. These unique, beehive-shaped grass houses were exclusive to the Wichita, housed extended families, and could last up to 14 years. Tools, fashioned from chert and bison bones, were used to construct homes and cultivate garden plots.
The Wichita Indians shared the Great Plains, in the central United States, with a variety of animals, including millions of bison, elk, and birds. The Wichita built their homes of poles and prairie grass, which grew up to 12 feet tall. These unique, beehive-shaped grass houses were exclusive to the Wichita, housed extended families, and could last up to 14 years. Tools, fashioned from chert and bison bones, were used to construct homes and cultivate garden plots.
Plains Societies and CulturesIndians of the Great Plains, written by Daniel J. Gelo of The University of Texas at San Antonio, is a text that emphasizes that Plains societies and cultures are continuing, living entities. Through a topical exploration, it provides a contemporary view of recent scholarship on the classic Horse Culture Period while also bringing readers up-to-date with historical and cultural developments of the 20th and 21st centuries. In addition, it contains wide and balanced coverage of the many different tribal groups, including Canadian and southern populations. Teaching & Learning Experience: Improve Critical Thinking - Indians of the Great Plains provides recent scholarship and up-to-date historical and cultural developments of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries to see the Plains societies and cultures as continuing, living entities — including charts showing tribal organization and kinship systems. Engage Students — Indians of the Great Plains features excerpts of Native poetry, songs, and ethnographic accounts, as well as Chapter Summaries and End-of-Chapter Review Questions.
