Archer W.: Is this how people dressed? How do we know, or what evidence do we have?
Dana Hedgpeth: Great question. You sound just like my kids: “How do we know that?” Well, the reason we know that is, for one, through stories. Native Americans are storytellers and we’re still passing down those stories of how our ancestors lived, and we’re still living and wearing those traditional clothings today in our ceremonies.
Native Americans were resourceful. We dressed depending on the climate, where we lived, and what was available. Clothes were made from animal hides, buck skins. Deer skins were used as dresses, as pants, animal pelts used for warmth—parts of beavers, furs, feathers. Plants you can use for cooking, for eating, and for fibers for making clothes.
So all of this is through our teachings. That’s how we know that.
Archer W.: Thank you, Dana. That was Dana Hedgpeth from the newsroom of The Washington Post.
