About Choctaw Housing
The Choctaw Indians are a Native American tribe that originated in the southeastern states of Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama. In the 17th century several bands of southeastern Native Americans came together to form the Choctaw Indian tribe.
The Choctaw Indians were moved from their tribal lands to reservations in Oklahoma in 1831, during the presidency of Andrew Jackson.
Before being moved from their homeland, Choctaw housing consisted of wattle and daub structures grouped together in settlements.
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History
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Wattle and daub housing is not original to Choctaw culture. Archeologists have found evidence of wattle and daub structures dating back as far as 6000 years ago during the Neolithic period. Wattle and daub archeological findings have been discovered in Europe, Africa, Mesoamerica, and in North America, most notably in the southeast with the Mississippian cultures like the Choctaw. As a settled, non-nomadic people, it was imperative that Choctaw housing be permanent structures that could stand up to the elements of the southeast.
Features
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Choctaw housing, known as wattle and daub, was made from wooden poles, smaller branches and vines, and a daub mixture consisting of mud and straw. Vertical wooden poles provided the framework for the traditional housing for the Choctaw. Interlaced branches and vines, or wattle, were used between each wooden pole to create a lattice that the daub was then applied to. Daub could be made from many substances, but it was normally a combination of mud and straw. The daub was applied to the interwoven branches to fill the open spaces and insulate the structure. Thatch roofs covered the Choctaw housing to keep out the heavy rains common in the climate of the southeastern United States.
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Size
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The wattle and daub Choctaw housing was round with conical thatched roofs and large enough to accommodate one family group. When a child of the family was of an age to marry, he or she and the new spouse would construct their own home. There were no windows in the Choctaw homes, just a single door to enter and leave that was only about three or four feet tall. Choctaw housing did not allow for anything but the necessities to be stored in the home, so most Choctaw just had small cane beds raised off the floor, a large pot in the center of the room for cooking and dishes for eating.
Benefits
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The wattle and daub Choctaw housing was ideal for the climate of the southeastern United States and the culture of the Choctaw people. Most other Indian tribes in the southeastern states used similar wattle and daub housing structures because of its obvious benefits.
These Native Americans were not nomadic, so they did not have to worry with portable housing that could travel easily from place to place. They were able to construct more permanent structures that would keep out the colder temperatures in the winter and rain throughout the year.
Time Frame
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It is not known exactly when this wattle and daub structure became the traditional Choctaw housing, and that of other Mississippian cultures, but the evidence suggests this type of housing was in use long before Europeans came to the area in the 16th century.This continued to be the traditional Choctaw housing until removal to Indian Territory in the 1830s.
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