external image 108_9_a_blackfoot_travois.jpg
An example of a travois.
http://www.gosee.de/images/content/108_9_a_blackfoot_travois.jpg

weapondry

· Bows and arrows
· Fought with spears and rawhide shields.
· first made points of stone- arrows and lace tips
· bows made out of oak and juniper
· acquired guns in the seventeenth century
· usually attacked Spanish, Ute and Pueblo Indians
· Tools made from wood, bones, antlers, and stone
· Bow made from one piece of wood
o Mulberry
o Locust
o Oak
o Maple
· Bowstring made from deer sinew
· Took pride in their weapons
· Made decorated bow cases
· Mountain lion skin was thought to bring good luck to the hunter
· Three split feathers spaced evenly apart
· Shields
· Spears
· War clubs
· Leather war shirts
· Knives made out of stone


Native Languages of the Americas website © 1998-2008- **http://www.bigorrin.org/navajo_kids.htm**
A Native American Encyclopedia, By Barry Pritzker- **http://books.google.ca/books?id=ZxWJVc4ST0AC&pg=PA54&lpg=PA54&dq=navajo+weapons+1800&source=bl&ots=y_RYa-2HZd&sig=C3wwvCV4rYPfL90XwN2S7nd7Yzg&hl=en&ei=sdD4ScL9JYbfmQfBqaCZDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6**


Transportation
· used dogs pulling travois
· help carry belongings
· Europeans brought horses to America
· The Navajos could travel faster
· Babies placed on cradleboards
o Made of, frame, back slats, and a hoop
o Baby wrapped in layers of clothes, then strapped to the board
o Hoop protects babies head in case of a fall
· Makes it easy for mother to transport baby
o Especially on horseback
· Generally kept on cradleboards for first six or seven months
· Cradleboards often flatten the back of the baby’s head

From the Book: The Apches And Navajos, By Craig A. Doherty and Kathrine M. Doherty