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Fishing
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For the Indians, one of the primary ways that they got food was through fishing. This method of hunting could be done in any season. Fishing, both then and now. has a very scientific nature to it. It requires finding the right spot on the water, having the correct baits, and being patient. Fishing is a lot of trial and error and waiting to see what happens.
In the winter, Indian would set up their wigwams near good hunting ground. The Indians then would use snowshoes to travel long distances over the deep snow in order to find a place to go fishing. The snowshoes are shown in the picture in the bottom left hand corner. All of the artifacts in the picture are from the Milwaukee Public Museum and are specific to the Wisconsin Woodland Indians. Once they found a lake or river, they would create a hole in the ice. The Indians had very specific lures that they would use. These lures were fish or frog shaped. They were dangled in the water; whenever a fish came to investigate the lure, the Indians would spear it.
In the warmer months, fishing was done very differently. Fish were caught by nets, traps, baits, and fishhooks. Below is a picture taken at the Milwaukee Public Museum of a basket that was used to trap fish. One of the common ways to hunt was spearfishing at night. The Indians would use a torch for light and attach it to the front of their canoes. The light helped attract the fish to the canoe as well as allow the fishermen to see and spear the fish.
Fishing was a much more common activity in the warmer months because the fish were around in more of a bulk. The tribes would often travel a lot to keep hunting the fish. Then the winter months were much more leisurely with the occasional hunting.
In the winter, Indian would set up their wigwams near good hunting ground. The Indians then would use snowshoes to travel long distances over the deep snow in order to find a place to go fishing. The snowshoes are shown in the picture in the bottom left hand corner. All of the artifacts in the picture are from the Milwaukee Public Museum and are specific to the Wisconsin Woodland Indians. Once they found a lake or river, they would create a hole in the ice. The Indians had very specific lures that they would use. These lures were fish or frog shaped. They were dangled in the water; whenever a fish came to investigate the lure, the Indians would spear it.
In the warmer months, fishing was done very differently. Fish were caught by nets, traps, baits, and fishhooks. Below is a picture taken at the Milwaukee Public Museum of a basket that was used to trap fish. One of the common ways to hunt was spearfishing at night. The Indians would use a torch for light and attach it to the front of their canoes. The light helped attract the fish to the canoe as well as allow the fishermen to see and spear the fish.
Fishing was a much more common activity in the warmer months because the fish were around in more of a bulk. The tribes would often travel a lot to keep hunting the fish. Then the winter months were much more leisurely with the occasional hunting.