teepee

[snakeman]

I live in mid NC. Does anyone know what I could use to thatch a teepee? Has anybody on here ever made one? Any help would be great.

[Sourdough]

Build a small scale tepee first, use small limbs and weave them in and out of the main poles. If you have children, and build the model in the backyard, the kids can help build it and camp in it.

[trax]

If you build a proper teepee, you don't thatch it at all. There's a couple of good native crafts sites that give teepee building instructions, but I don't have them available right now. I'd recommend googling it or whatever search engine you use.

You guys both sound like you're talking about what is commonly called simply a lodge or a wigwam.

[Beo]

Try this site.
http://www.nativetech.org/

You may have been thinking of a wigwam, Native American homes were designed so that they could be moved easily. The most common home was called a wigwam. It was a covered wooden frame shaped like a cone. The coverings were carried from location to location. Wigwams usually housed ten to twelve people. When a new wigwam was needed, women often worked together to build it. This was an important task and one that took skill and knowledge. Some women looked for suitable poles to build the frame.
The women cut five to ten long spruce poles. They found fir branches for the floor. Usually one woman oversaw everything. They took the spruce poles and tied them together at the top with lengths of spruce root. Then they stood the poles up and spread them apart at the bottom until they formed a cone shape. They bent a sapling into a hoop and tied it to the inside frame near the top. The hoop kept the poles from slipping. They covered the framework of the wigwam with large sheets of birch bark. The sheets were sewn to the frame using spruce root. Holes were punched through the bark using a bone awl. They kept the birch bark warm and wet so it did not tear, while it is being sewn. Starting at the bottom, they overlapped the sheets of bark to keep out the wind and rain. They anchored the bark by laying poles against the outside of the wigwam. The Native Americans hung a thick hide over the entrance. A rock fireplace stood in the center of the wigwam. It provided heat, light and a place to cook. The wigwam is left open at the peak so smoke can escape.

Or you may be thinking of a "Chickee" which is the word Seminoles use for "house." The first Seminoles to live in North Florida are known to have constructed log cabin-type homes, some two stories tall, with sleeping quarters upstairs. The chickee style of architecture - palmetto thatch over a cypress log frame - was born during the early 1800s when Seminole Indians, pursued by U.S. troops, needed fast, disposable shelter while on the run. Though indigenous peoples in other parts of North and South America have developed similar dwellings, it is generally agreed that the Seminole Indian technique and product are far superior.
So popular, efficient and functional is the chickee that such Seminole architecture can be seen all over South Florida. The chickee structure should last about ten years and needs to be re-thatched every five years. Several Seminole Tribal members make a living building custom chickees for both commercial and private interests.

Here is a pic of an old wikiup
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[FVR]

Google Reginald Laubin, he passed a few years back, but he wrote a great book on archery and another great book on tipis. I have heard nothing but good things about the book.


Here is a pic of a one-pole aka pyramid tent. They are pretty simple to make, I have a set of directions in a book somewhere in the back of my bookshelf.

Pyramids can use the one pole on the inside like shown, or if I was going to be there for a week, I'd use three poles on the outside. They are one of the most sturdy tents from what I've read and alot easier to put up than a tipi.

I thought of a tipi for years, but the poles and transportation was a problem. Most who use them at the rendezvous, have pickups with big racks to carry the many long poles.

This tent folds right up and hardly takes up any room in my camry. The pole, I just cut down while in the woods.

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[snakeman]

Thanks for the help. I'm gonna try to make a tripod with a lot of other added sticks and them put branches and leaves on it. I guess it is more of a wigwam like beo said.

[Rick]

Hey, Frank. Fine looking boss you got there! I'll bet that little gal can get you to do just about anything she wants.