The Humble Tumpline pt. II

After receiving a lot of positive feedback and questions regarding the first blog posting on tumplines, I have decided to write a follow-up.  In this posting, I would like to give a few quotes on tumplines and their use, show a few more historic images, and give a brief how-to on tying up a tumpline to your gear. For employees of the fur trade, tumplines were usually personal property and were supplied by the individual....

A few projects

I was hoping to get a wigwam part II post up by now, but I have been busy and lost motivation on that project for the moment.  I still hope to get cattail mats made and cover the wigwam before winter, but I am not sure that it will happen.  We will see.  In the meanwhile, the gardens are in full harvest mode.  We have been freezing, canning, drying, and fermenting away.  Two of the most recent BIG items has been almost 6...

The humble tumpline

The tumpline is one of those basic straps for hauling burdens that has been used for centuries.  A simple strap has been used by many people historically (and prehistorically), but the use of this strap on the forehead seems to be a concept indigenous to the Americas.  As Europeans, especially the French, came into North America, the tumpline became yet another technology borrowed from the American Indians, just like the...