Shoshone-Bannock Subsistence and SocietyMurphy, Robert F. (Robert Francis)
History
Shoshone-Bannock Subsistence and Society
Murphy, Robert F. (Robert Francis)
Bannock Indians; Shoshoni Indians
Those Shoshone and Bannock who did not follow the buffalo party
carried on the fall hunt in southeastern Idaho, northern Utah, and
western Wyoming. The elk and deer hunted could best be taken by small
groups, hence hunting parties were not large and communal techniques
were not necessary. Also, since these animals were scattered
throughout the region and did not travel in the huge herds
characteristic of the buffalo, the population had to spread out
accordingly. Somewhat larger groups gathered to hunt antelope, but
these were temporary aggregations. The actual size of the fall hunting
groups is uncertain. One informant said that each consisted of about
fifteen tipis, while another said that groups of two to four tipis
were common. These smaller camp groups were known as _nanogwa_. Their
size was said to have made them more vulnerable to attack than the
somewhat larger concentrations.
Some locales were known to have a plentiful supply of certain game
animals. Caribou County in southeastern Idaho was considered good for
deer hunting, while Jackson Hole and Yellowstone Park were noted for
elk. The arid highlands of southwestern Wyoming abounded in antelope.
Of course, all of these areas contained other types of game, and wild
vegetables could be obtained in all.
The fall hunt began at the end of August or in early September when
the game was growing fat. Some parties went from Camas Prairie to
Jackson Hole and Yellowstone via Idaho Falls and the Snake River. The
route used was much the same as that followed by U.S. Highway 26. One
informant spoke of Targhee Pass and West Yellowstone, Idaho, as being
a point of entry to and departure from the Yellowstone country. The
Snake River Trail was more commonly used to enter Jackson and
Yellowstone, although West Yellowstone seems to have been more
frequently traveled on the homeward journey. The west slope of the
Tetons, the area drained by Teton River, was used also by hunting
parties.
Other Bannock and Shoshone camp groups went southward through the
Portneuf Valley and over to the Bear River at Soda Springs; they
followed the Bear River until they bore eastward to Kemmerer, Wyoming.
Most camps of the Idaho Indians remained on the west side of the Green
River. The chief game of the area was the antelope herds which were
found on affluents of the Green River, northeast of Kemmerer. The
Idaho Shoshone and Bannock were joined in the antelope hunt by the
Eastern Shoshone of Wyoming and by the Ute, some of whom crossed the
Uinta Range in early autumn for this purpose. Whether all these people
actually combined for communal hunts is uncertain. It is more probable
that small groups from each population amalgamated. Another attraction
of the Green River country was Fort Bridger, where many of the Indians
went for trade.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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