- Fact 2 - The Cree are one of the
largest tribes in North America and
members of the Plains Indian people originally living in the
sub-arctic regions of eastern Canada and migrated south into the
woodlands from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic coast
setting in northern Minnesota, North Dakota and Montana. The
Algonquian language was spoken by the Cree
- Fact 3 - Homes and Houses: Tepees
(also spelled Teepees or Tipis) are tent-like American Indian houses used by
Plains Cree. A tepee is constructed
from wooden poles and animal skins such as buffalo hides and
designed to be quickly set and quickly dismantled - a village
could be ready to move in an hour
- Fact 4 -
Homes and Houses: The Woodland Cree lived in Wigwams (or wetus)
which are
also known as birchbark houses.
Wigwams are small cone-shaped houses with an arched roof made of
wooden frames that are covered with woven mats and sheets of birchbark which
are held in place by ropes or strips of wood
- Fact 5 -
The name of a famous Cree leader
was Plains Cree Chief Poundmaker (Pitikwahanapiwiyin) who was
famous as as a peacemaker and defender of his people
- Fact 6 - Clothes and Clothing -
Clothes were generally made from the skins of animals which were
sewn together from the thread made from the sinews of deer.
- Fact 7 - Clothing for men: Men wore
breechcloths which were made from a long rectangular piece of
animal skin or cloth which was worn between the legs and tucked
over a belt, so that the flaps of the breechcloth covered the
front and behind. The legs were bare.
- Fact 8 - Clothing: Men also wore fringed tunics
- Fact 9 -
Clothing: Leggings were worn by both men and women to cover the
bare legs and were sometimes decorated with a fringe
- Fact 10 -
Clothing for women: Women wore long buckskin dresses (the skin
of a male deer) which they covered with mantles, or cloaks
- Fact 11 - Shoes and footwear:
Moccasins were made of soft leather or deerskin and sewn
together with deer sinew. Moccasins were a soft slip on shoe, or
slipper, consist of a sole and sides made of one piece of
leather, stitched together at the top and were a light beige
color.
- Fact 12 - Headdresses: Traditionally they wore fur or leather
caps decorated with feathers but they also wore feather war
bonnets and Roach
headdresses (also called porcupine roaches)
- Roach headdresses were made of a
stiff thin strip of animal hair that goes over the top of the
head. They were held open by comb-like objects, originally
carved of antler, called roachspreaders. Roach headdresses stood
straight up from the head like a tuft or crest and are closely
associated with the Mohawk or Mohican tribes.
- Fact 13 - Feather War Bonnets: They also wore
beaded, feathered war bonnets. The war bonnet, with its long
trailer of feathers was a symbol of honor and accomplishment
among Plains tribes such as the
Arapaho,
Sioux,
Crow,
Blackfoot,
Cheyenne, and Plains Cree. War bonnets consisted of a cap or
band decorated with eagle feathers, ermine fur and beadwork.
There were 3 types of feathered war bonnets
- a trailing type of bonnet with feathers
trailing to the floor
- a straight-up type of feather headdress
- a halo type of war bonnet in which the
feathers fanned out around the face and shoulders
- Fact 14 - Hair of both men and
women was
kept long and braided and on special occasions braids
were decorated with feathers
- Fact 15 -
In 1884 the Cree were involved in the second Riel Rebellion in
Saskatchewan
- Fact 16 - Jewelry: Women wore
beaded necklaces
- Fact 17 - Face paint / War Paint: Men wore
bright face paint in times of war and also for religious
ceremonies.
- Fact 18 - Cree weapons: Weapons
included bows and arrows, clubs, spears and knives. They also used
shields made of buffalo hides
- Fact 19 - Enemies of the Cree
tribe included the Iroquois Dakota and Inuit (Eskimos) tribes
- Fact 21 - Food: Men hunted buffalo,
moose, beaver and rabbits. Meat was supplemented by roots, berries and fruits
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