Stay Signed In
Do you want to access your site more quickly on this computer? Check this box, and your username and password will be remembered for two weeks. Click logout to turn this off.
Stay Safe
Do not check this box if you are using a public computer. You don't want anyone seeing your personal info or messing with your site.
* Clicking on the images will lead you to the source of the image. The image may be placed in text.
The Plains Indians were exceedingly intellectual when it came to tools. They had many hunting traps and some of them were also very clever. Daily life tools were also used but they were generally the basic ones.
The Plains first used spears with stone points. Bows and arrows then replaced spears with stone points due to their more efficient hunting. There were more arrows carried than spears in a hunting trip due to their light mass. Arrows were also more accurate and would go farther then spears. Branches of ash or willow were used to make arrows. Arrowheads were made of stone. The Plains Indians mainly had 2 hunting tools, the arrow and the spear.
Decoys were prepared of buffalo and other game. They were used to first fool the animal in its natural background, and then kill it with some weapons. Snare traps were also used to trap small game (rabbits, gophers, birds) for hunting. There were many fabulous traps invented by the Plains Indians.
Hammers were built of rock, a wooden handle, and skin straps. They were used to break up firewood, pound stakes into the ground, and crush berries. Knives and hide scrapers were assembled of sharp bones and stones. The handles of knives were created by deer antlers or wood. Water bottles were made from animal skins and the bison stomach. Dishes were built from birch bark and carved wood. Spoons assembled from animal bones, horns, wood, and shells. Hair brushes were created from porcupine tails. Roots and strips of hide were used to form ties. Rawhide was used to make drums. Pipes were erected from bones, wood, and special stones. Medicine balls were assembled with bison hair. Birch bark was used to form food containers. Drawstring bags were made from animal skin. As you see, the Plains Indians had many tools at their disposal.
