Dusty, Thank you for your thoughts on this. From what I have read in Cushman, Debo, Kidwell, etc. your "wattle and daub" sounds very much like the huts used by the early Choctaw further north in Mississippi. It is interesting to speculate on how far back the custom of building a hut on a raft might go even in southern LA and MS. It never ceases to amaze me how folks adapt to their environmental circumstances. Sounds like these days they are used as duck blinds in swampy areas. If you ever happen to see anything on the type of dwelling was used during periods of travel, say from central MS to the Mississippi swamps, please let me know. At 07:20 PM 04/09/2001 -0500, you wrote: >Dennis: >The type of dwelling used down here on the Gulf Coast was called "wattle and >daub", and was a combination of poles used to support the structure with >interwoven sticks, twigs or branches used for the walls. Native clay used >as mortar to hold the sticks together. Dwellings of this nature were still >in use on occasion at the turn of the century, later evolving into the "log >cabin" type structure seen more recently. > >In the extreme southern, swampy parts of La. and Miss., there is still in >use today a structure similar to a small log cabin which is built on a raft >made of cypress or pine logs lashed together. When the rains come in the >spring and the Mississippi river rises causing flooding throughout the >Atchafalaya Basin swamplands, these dwellings float up with the high water. >They are still referred to by the Cajun people as "Choctaws", and are >sometimes used as temporary hunting lodges. > >dusty >----- Original Message ----- >From: Dennis Boswell <dennisb@primenet.com> >To: <CHAHTA-L@rootsweb.com> >Sent: Monday, April 09, 2001 3:47 PM >Subject: [CHAHTA] Mississippi Choctaw Dwellings > > > > Halito, CHAHTA-L subscribers, > > > > This message concerns pre-removal Choctaw, not those living in IT >following > > removal. I make this distinction because my question (below) concerns only > > those Choctaw living in Mississippi prior to and during removal. > > > > I understand they lived in log cabins resembling a Hogan (similar to those > > used by Navajos with a hole in the roof to allow smoke to escape). An > > example of a Hogan may be seen at, > > > > http://www.m-w.com/mw/art/hogan.htm > > > > In established villages, I have no doubt their dwellings resembled the > > Hogan. However, there is a possibility that when they traveled to the > > flood plains of the Yazoo and Mississippi Delta on hunting trips (as was > > the custom in the fall after the harvest season), they may have used a >more > > transportable dwelling structure such as a tepee, a picture of which may >be > > seen at, > > > > http://www.m-w.com/mw/art/tepee.htm > > > > ... or a wigwam (similar to those used by ANs in the Great Lakes region).a > > picture of which may be seen at, > > > > http://www.m-w.com/mw/art/wigwam.htm > > > > I have seen nothing that claims they ever used tepee- or wigwam-like > > dwellings, even while traveling overland. In fact, it seems likely that > > during overland travel and after arriving at their remote destination, >they > > may not have used any form of dwelling - portable or otherwise unless it > > was built on the spot out of materials on hand at the location. One reason > > they may not have taken their dwellings with them is the fact that >Choctaws > > hunted west of the Mississippi before removal. Crossing the Mississippi > > while transporting any form of portable dwelling would make the crossing > > task that much more difficult. > > > > Does anyone on the list have an opinion or know of a reference concerning > > the use of dwellings, portable or otherwise, during extended periods of > > travel away from the village? > > > > NOTE: (to myself) Might Choctaw use of Hogan-like structures indicate an > > original west to east migration path that took Choctaw's ancestors through > > Navajo lands en-route to Mississippi? > > > > Yakoke, > > > > Dennis K. Boswell > > 301 Crow Canyon Drive > > Folsom, CA 95630 > > > > Tel: (916) 987-3599 > > Fax: (916) 987-3555 > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ==== CHAHTA Mailing List ==== > > To subscribe to CHOCTAW-SOUTHEAST-L Genealogy mail list: > > Send msg. to CHOCTAW-SOUTHEAST-L-request@rootsweb.com > > Put "one" word in "body" of message:... "subscribe" without the quotes > > Nothing in the subject line... Turn off signatures....... > > > > >==== CHAHTA Mailing List ==== >Choctaw Home Page: >http://freepages.cultures.rootsweb.com/~choctaw/ Regards, Dennis K. Boswell 301 Crow Canyon Drive Folsom, CA 95630 Tel: (916) 987-3599 Fax: (916) 987-3555