The Blackfoot Nation

By Emily Potucek

In the beginning, everything was covered with water. Old Man sent a beaver, otter, and muskrat to go below the surface and bring back a section of the earth. They did not succeed, but the duck brought back pieces of the earth stuck to his foot. Old Man took it into his hand, and dropped it. Rain then came and gave the earth nutrients to flourish into what it is today.

Old Man and Old Woman, the only two humans in existence, decided how everything would function, creating people out of clay and their breath. As the Sisksika tribe began to form, they noticed the black color on the bottom of their moccasins, and because of this, acquired the name Blackfeet.

Late 1700’s Before Europeans, Blackfeet tribes consisted of bands made of 50-100 people. They hunted deer, elk, antelope, and buffalo, and gathered wild plants. They lived in cone-shaped teepees made of buffalo hide and wood poles. There were 1-2 headsmen in charge of each band, and were chosen through skills and contributions to the tribe. Living on the plains of Alberta, Montana, and Saskatchewan, they were constantly in warfare with neighboring tribes because of buffalo hunting and territories.

In warfare, one of the Blackfoot’s enemy tribes, the Shoshones, rode into battle on horseback. Because of this, they knew that to have an advantage over enemy tribes, they too needed horses.

The BuffaloTo the Blackfeet, the buffalo was a sacred animal in which every part of was used

•Fresh Meat was eaten and anything remaining was dried and stored•The Hide once prepared was made into teepees, furnishings, moccasins, and clothing.•The Tongue and Skull were both used in prayer and in the religious Sundance Ceremony.

•The Hoof and Feet were used as a sort of glue and for rattles•The Bladder was made into a pouch for medicines and canteens•The Tail worked as a brush for painting, decorations, and whips used on horses.

Daily Life – Social StructureThe Blackfoot Tribe separated itself into smaller bands of people that

consisted of extended family, with no formal government except for an appointed leader. If a band became too big, they would simply split into two smaller groups. Names were based upon physical characteristics or personal experiences of the members. Leaders were chosen because of their bravery and generosity.

A man’s duties were to hunt for food, care for the horses, and to defend their bands and territories. Because of their jobs they tended to be away from camp frequently.

Women’s lives were rooted in the camps. They made food and cared for children. They were also responsible for dying foods, tanning hides, and sewing clothes and teepees.

Men Women

Blackfeet

Band Band BandLeader Leader Leader

Men Women Men MenWomen Women

Daily Life -Childhood • Before a child was born

Adulthood •Before a child was born, a mother went to be cared for by a medicine woman. Immediately after birth, a child would be the center of a prayer ceremony and it’s umbilical would be stored in a sacred beaded box. •Girls had to keep their names forever, but a boy could earn different names based on his actions.Girls were initially taught to do simple tasks like gathering wood. Soon after, they learned how to prepare foods, tan hides, and assemble teepees.Boys were trained by their fathers to use bows and arrows, watch over horses, and follow tracks.

•Young men were required to go on vision quests with a medicine man when they were between the ages of 15 and 21.•Marriages were arranged by the parents when the groom was over the age of 21. Men were allowed to have as many wives as they could afford.•When an important man died, he was sewn into his teepee with his possessions. His horse was also killed, so he had a ride into the afterlife. Other, less influential men and women had their bodies wrapped with their possessions, and then placed high in the trees so animals didn’t disturb them.

Crowfoot

Crowfoot was the first Blackfoot chief to encourage peace between his people and the whites since travelers had invaded their lands in the the mid - 1800’s. Because of this, a peace treaty was made with Canada in 1877 called the Peace Treaty No. 7. Crowfoot died April 25th, 1890.To see more significant dates for the Blackfeet people,

Click Here

Religion

Sun God – The principle god to Blackfoot beliefs, he is married to Moon God.

Moon God – Mother of Morning Star, she was banished because of her son.

Morning Star – Was initially banished from his home, and became a mythological hero to the Blackfeet.

Apistotoki- also known as Old Man to the Blackfoot people, was the creator of the universe. Stories of him being foolish are told to teach children how to act.

Blackfoot people believe that many animals and birds, as well as thunder, contain extraordinary powers

CeremoniesThe Sun Dance

• It was an annual gathering where people feasted, were able to wear special clothing, and meet with friends from other bands.

• The festival’s purpose was to show off young men’s pain endurance as to prove they belonged in the tribe.

The Medicine Lodge

• This was the most important ceremony to the tribe.

• It was an important woman’s job to pay for this ceremony. Her duty was to keep a promise to the gods by buying a medicine bundle from the last sponsor of the Medicine Lodge and taking on the sponsorship herself by supplying hundreds of buffalo tongues for special events and building her own lodge out of 100 willows.

Since the Blackfeet were not stationary, their houses were teepees. The walls were made of buffalo hide and supported by several wooden poles. Women would assemble, paint designs, and hang decorations on the structures

Housing

ArtArtistically, the Blackfeet were most well – known for

their moccasins.• They were made from buffalo hide with buffalo

hair lining the inside.• For daily wear, they were left simple, but were

detailed with elaborate beading designs for special occasions.

• Early designs were made geometrical because they initially used porcupine needles for the beads.

• Curved designs were incorporated when colored beads were acquired from trading posts.

• Flower designs were most common.• Over time, the art was included in other articles

of clothing.

ClothingFor day to day clothing, people would wear simple buffalo hide shirts and pants, with basic moccasins. These outfits incorporated very little beading.

Beaded buckskin shirts were made for special occasions, they were worn by a son or husband of the female who made it.

Headdresses were only worn by war leaders and elders. They were made of eagle that stuck directly up encircling the wearers head in a sort of crown. Each feather signified a brave or heroic deed the person had performed.

Language and Documenting of History

The Blackfoot people spoke a language that is based off of the Algonquin language family. Algonquin is a sub-family of Native American languages.

Winter Counts – Before a writing system was established, Blackfoot tribal members kept records of their history by drawing and painting pictures onto buffalo hides. Each winter, people would look back at important events that had happened throughout the year. These records were called winter counts.

Early Contact With the Europeans

Near The end of the 1700’s, Blackfeet tribes began trading with the Europeans. They brought dried meats, buffalo robes, and furs to the British trading posts. The Blackfeet first began to see European Americans in the Meriwether Lewis and William Clark expedition of 1804 that went through 1806.

As trade began to flourish, Blackfeet hunters had to compete with American trappers to sell their furs. Because of this, any American traders and trappers who came north on the Missouri River were considered enemies and driven out of the Blackfoot’s land. These feelings changed when the American Fur Company made peace and built a trading station for the Blackfeet on the northern part of the Missouri River in 1841.

Rising Conflicts and Treaty AgreementsWith the discovery of gold in 1849, large amounts of settlers began to come west, causing many disagreements between them and the Blackfeet people.Because of this, the Lame Bull Treaty was made. It stated that the Blackfeet could have a large portion of Montana made into a reservation, would regularly receive payments in goods, and get training to be ranchers as long as they left settlers alone and allowed telegraphs and railroads to be built on their land.

Later treaties and government orders shrunk their land to a fraction of its original size. Feeble attempts in war were made only to be responded to by the Marias River Massacre in 1870, when The Blackfeet were mistakenly attacked to American troops, killing around 200 innocent women and children.

In 1870, the Blackfoot territory was sold to the Canadian government. Later in 1877, they signed Treaty No. 7, a peace agreement causing the Blackfeet to give up 50,000 square miles of land in exchange for reserves, payments, and tools.

They continued their traditional lifestyle until buffalo disappeared because of American Hunting.

Reservation Life

Since the Buffalo had disappeared in 1879, the Blackfoot people’s only option for survival was to move to the government assigned lands and adapt a new way of life.

Many people were not ready for this change and died in the starvation winter of 1883.

A lot of Blackfoot bands came together to move to the reservations. The US government made land divisions, causing the reservations to grow even smaller. This went on until the Reorganization Act of 1934.

Tribes also moved onto Canadian reserves, and were forced to give up their lands as well. Because of the little land for farming, they relied on government food rations. Boarding Schools were started and took children away from their native lands, attempting to teach them to turn their backs on their culture.

Where Are They Now Educational and employee benefits have improved immensely. Social services for alcohol addiction and family issues are now provided. All tribes elect council leaders and the Canadian tribes are taking steps toward tribal independence. In North America, there are three main reservations for Blackfoot people

The Blood Indian Reserve is the biggest in Canada and makes it’s living off of farming and growing crops like grains.

The Blackfeet Reservation now runs on 1.5 million acres in Montana. They depend on tourism because the reserve is located by Glacier National Park. They also have a casino.

The Peigan Reserve owns and runs a clothing business and sells art to tourists. Elders also help explain their way of life at Head-Smashed-In National Monument.

The Man from WashingtonThe end came easy for most of us. Packed away in our crude beginnings in some far corner of a flat world, we didn't expect much more than firewood and buffalo robes to keep us warm. The man came down, a slouching dwarf with rainwater eyes,and spoke to us. He promisedthat life would go on as usual, that treaties would be signed, and everyone — man, woman and child — would be inoculated against a world in which we had no part, a world of money, promise and disease -James Welch

Bibliography"Buffalo~Bison." LewisAndClarckTrail. National Geographic, n.d. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://lewisandclarktrail.com/buffalo.htm>.

"The Disappearance of the Buffalo." Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America: Primary Documents. Ed. Jeffrey Lehman. Detroit: Gale Group, 2000. Gale U.S. History In Context. Web. 15 Oct. 2011.

"History Timeline." Blackfeet Nation. Blackfeet Nation, n.d. Web. 24 Oct. 2011. <http://www.blackfeetnation.com/about-the-blackfeet/28-history-timeline.html> Miller, J. R. "Crowfoot." World Book Student. World Book, 2011. Web. 3 Oct. 2011. Pepion, Donald D. "Blackfeet Indians." World Book Student. World Book, 2011. Web. 3 Oct. 2011.

Stout, Mary. Native American Peoples Blackfoot. 1st ed. Milwaukee, WI: Gareth Stevens Publishing, 2005. Print.

Welch, James. "Poems by James Welch." The Seattle Times. WA]. The Seattle Times Company, 20 Oct. 2004. Web. 16 Oct. 2011. <http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/books/2002067323_welchworks20.html>.

Author’s Page

Hi my name is Emily Potucek, and I’m an 8th grader at Cal Young Middle School. This PowerPoint on the Blackfoot people was a project that has been for my social studies class. Right now we are studying Native Americans as an introduction to us learning about the history of our country. I hope you enjoyed it!

In school, I love learning about Math because everything has a logical answer. I also really enjoy reading, and my favorite book series is the Hunger Games Trilogy. Outside of school, my passion is playing softball. I play year round on a club called the Oregon Reign. I also play basketball on Cal Young’s team. In my free time, I like seeing my friends and going to see movies.