Tools of the Dakota

The tools commonly used by the Dakota Indians were fairly basic and universal. There were some tools however that were specific to seasons, such as the ice sled runners made from the rib cage of a buffalo and the snowshoes made from the rawhide of a buffalo. As you can see, there is a trend of using the buffalo in these goods and is the predominent source of all the materials needed for making the tools of the Dakota. Hoes (shoulder blade), fleshing tools (tibia and femur), thread (sinew), paintbrushes (hip and shoulder blade), fuel (dung), water buckets (the paunch), cutlery, cups and, bowls (the horns and bones), and glue (hoofs and hide). Not all tools were obtained from the buffalo though. Flint, with a layered fracture, was also very useful for making spear and ax heads, and also knives.

Manufacturing of Tools

The Dakota used products like stone, wood and jaw bones to make tools. Flint and wood were important resources for the Dakota to make most of their tools. For the Dakota flint and wood were valuable resources used for making of houses, boats, tools, utensils, weapons, containers, and ceremonial objects. Also, the Dakota used wood to make boats and their clothing. Flint that was already sharpened was used to make tools from wood. Beaver teeth were prized as amulets and for making tools used for cutting. Some of them used a variety of stone tools for woodworking, many of these were replaced by metal tools after contact with European traders. The Dakota decorated their tools with symbolic images seen in dreams or prescribed by shamans.

Weapons of the Dakota

The Dakota people used anything from spears to firearms for hunting or for when they were fighting. In early altercations with the Europeans the Dakota were using spears, tomahawks and bows and arrows. At first the tips of spears were made from flint and the tips were fastened to the “shaft” using glue made from blood. After the Dakota started trading with the Europeans they began to tips of the spears out of metal which was more dangerous than a flint tip. The spears used by the Dakota were also used to hunt buffalo. The tomahawks were also at first made from flint and after trade began with the Europeans they made the blade out of metal.

Firearms that Indians acquired impacted the way they live and how they depended on trade from the Europeans. They are both fired out of an object and can kill in one shot, but firearms had distinct advantages over the bow and arrow. The firearm first used by the Dakota was a muzzle-loading flintlock which they acquired from European traders in the 17th century. They were not very accurate, they took a long time to reload and they had a short range, but, the noise, smoke and fire from the gun scared enemies and made them run. In the 1800’s these guns were replaced by “trade guns” which were guns that were made specifically for Indians. These guns were much more accurate than the early guns and also had a longer range. Warriors riding on horseback could use this gun and they would have an advantage; they could reload and load with both hands and fire over or under their horse’s neck, even at close range. In the mid-19th century the Indians began acquiring rifles and carbines. They either got these from trading or from capturing them from wagon trains. With all of these guns that the Indians wanted so badly, they couldn’t use them very much because ammunition and the materials to repair the guns were in short supply. The bow and arrow remained the primary long distance weapon for the Indians until the Winchester Rifle came about in 1873 and began to replace the bows and arrows. The Winchester Rifle was a lightweight, repeating rifle that was easy to repair. These firearms increased the dependency on non-Indian traders for goods and products.

Bows and arrows were the main long range weapon of the Dakota until 1873 when the Winchester Rifle came about. Before that the Dakota used a composite bow made from gluing or lashing together many layers of materials. These bows were composed of flexible wood, horns and bones. The arrow was made from a variety of things: canes, light tree boughs (a tree branch), and reeds. When the arrow heads were attached they used: sinew, rawhide or twisted fiber. These arrowheads were made from: shell, stone, bone, antler, horn wood and later copper. When the first guns came to the Dakota they didn’t use them much. The bows were much more effective and could be fired much faster. At one time 20 arrows could be fired in the time it took to fire a single bullet. Also, a longbow archer could fire 12 arrows in a minute. The bow and arrow was rendered obsolete in the mid-1800’s when rifles that were more accurate and easier to reload came about.

Who Manufactured Weapons and Tools?

The Dakota Indians used different types of weapons and tools. There were different tools for a variety of jobs. The tools were handmade. Men and women helped to make and create the weapons and tools. Often times some of the material for several of the tools and weapons came from different parts of animals. In those cases, it was the men that did the hunting to get the material. The woman often times assembled the different parts to create the tool or the weapon. When the Europeans came to America, they brought firearms with them, and metals. The Dakota Indians traded or took these new kinds of tools and weapons from the Europeans. The European influence helped the Dakota Indians development of stronger and more durable tools and weapons. The different types of tools and weapons were made, used, and cared for by the Dakota Indians, and it was the job of the tribe as a whole to make sure they were kept and served well.