For efficiency purposes, including the availability of information, the Late Prehistoric Period [AD 1000-1600] will be the focus of this paper. With a particular interest in the Fort Ancient culture, the technological and socio-economic norms that the people observed will come into play in determining the typical winter survival tactics. From possible storage of food crops to the disbandment of villages into “winter camps,” the cold season called for the Fort Ancient peoples’ innovativeness if they were to survive (Late Prehistoric Period, 2013). Case in point the archaeological discoveries that found evidence that suggests hunting, gathering, and farming as the main economic activities (Blitz, 2010, p.18). During winter, the harsh weather made all three forms of sustenance impossible yet archeologists do not attribute the disappearance of the Fort Ancient culture to starvation. Thus, emerges the fundamental question: how could one survive in the winter season in the Late Prehistoric Period?
Technologically, shelter and a source of heat are the most important factors one has to consider in the cold season. About housing, in Exploring Ancient Native America, David Hurst Thomas mentions the findings of various archeologists that sought to determine how best the houses of the Fort Ancient people in SunWatch Ohio provided protection from the cold. Made from “wattle-and-daub,” the structures were in the views of one Chris Turnbow, an archeologist experimenting with the Fort Ancient homes, incapable of protecting those inside (Thomas, 2013, p.176). As Thomas quotes Turnbow, the “wind whipped right through” the thatched roof, and that alone provides enough reason to assert that, the Fort Ancient people lit fires in their homes for warmth (2013, p.177). The people used firewood as a source of fuel. Hence, because the available building techniques could not provide heat during winter, I focused more on finding fuel than I did on maintaining the house I could build from wattle-and-daub [soil, clay, animal dung, and straw, and sand]. That is why we formed “winter camps” made up of a few people and relocated to the forests where “firewood was plentiful” (Thomas, 2013, p.177). Notably, hunters made up the majority of my winter camp. At the same time, we built wigwams from “[bending] saplings” to create frameworks and spreading our “mats or hides” to cover the structures, that was enough (Snow, 2015, p.222). The hunters made sure we did not starve, and for warmth, the smaller structure of a wigwam required less wood than the bigger houses at the main village did.
Now, the economic sphere of the Fort Ancient people sheds light on the need for hunters during winter. Apparently, the populace exploited three life zones: “the prairie, the woodland, and the river” for provisions (Thomas, 2013, p.174). During the Late Prehistoric times, the prairie encompassed plants, including Indian grass, that the people could use to as medicine, food, and to make dye (Thomas, 2013, p.174). In the rivers, the Fort Ancient communities grew crops such as “corn, beans, squash, gourds, and sunflowers” for consumption with the women and children doing the planting while the men cleared forests for farming lands (Thomas, 2013, p.175). Finally, the woodland provided both game and fruits for the hunters and gatherers respectively (Late Prehistoric Period, 2013). For the farmers and gatherers, a favorable climate played a significant role by providing the planting weather and gatherable plants respectively. Only the hunters could continue their trade during winter. By that logic, I ensured that I am part of a hunting camp as the winter season swept across the Ohio River Valley: I always had the choice to trade hunted game with the gatherers and farmers in other camps.
With the given facts in mind, especially the materials, foods, and tactics that are applicable during the cold season, I maintained my body temperature by combining the technological and economic aspects covered thus far. First, I made sure that there was a constant fire to keep my “wigwam” warm both day and night (Snow, 2015, p.222). The animal skins that covered the makeshift shelter also make perfect body covers and coats: skins from big and furry animals were my target. Second, because my winter camp encompassed hunters, I sought out another one with farmers or gatherers. After all, as John Blitz’s New Perspectives in Mississippian Archaeology asserts, “the presence of maize in pottery residues” from the Late Prehistoric Period provides evidence of the peoples’ reliance on the crop (2010, p.24). I had to have some edible plants in my diet. Besides, there was a chance that the meat the hunters brought might deplete at some point; therefore, surviving on hunted animals alone was not an option.
In conclusion, I survived winter in Prehistoric Ohio by implementing the technological, economical, and social advances that were available in the late era. A precise combination of the three aspects availed warmth, food, safety, and companionship for the Fort Ancient people throughout the cold season.
References
Blitz, J. H. (2010). New Perspectives in Mississippian Archaeology. Journal of Archaeological Research, 18 (1), 1-39.
Late Prehistoric Period AD 1000 - 1750. (2013). Retrieved from Fort Ancient: http://www.fortancient.org/archaeology/ohio-pre-history?showall=&start=5
Snow, D. R. (2015). Archaeology of Native North America. New York: Routledge.
Thomas, D. H. (2013). Exploring Ancient Native America: An Archaeological Guide. New York: Routledge.
