Native American architecture—Northeast
Native American architecture in the Northeast region of North America reflects the diverse environmental and cultural contexts of its Indigenous tribes. Structures were primarily built from readily available materials like wood, bark, and reeds, showcasing adaptability to various climates and social needs. Prominent architectural forms include the longhouse, utilized by Iroquois and Huron tribes, which served as communal living spaces for larger clan groups, and the wigwam, a more portable dwelling made from bent saplings and bark that was common among Algonquin tribes.
The longhouse featured a barrel-shaped roof, smoke holes for ventilation, and sleeping areas along its sides, accommodating extended families. Wigwams could vary in design, from domed shapes to gabled structures, and were often constructed for seasonal use. On the coastal regions, tipis were crafted from straight poles, providing a conical shape ideal for mobility, with insulation from grass and birchbark.
Additionally, ceremonial structures such as dance lodges and shaking tents played significant roles in spiritual practices, reflecting the cultural importance of architecture beyond mere shelter. Overall, these architectural styles not only fulfilled practical purposes but also embodied the values, beliefs, and social structures of the tribes that created them.
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Native American architecture—Northeast
Tribes affected: Abenaki, Algonquin, Cahokia, Cayuga, Erie, Fox, Huron, Illinois, Iroquois, Kickapoo, Lenni Lenape, Lumbee, Mahican, Maliseet, Massachusett, Mattaponi, Menominee, Metis, Miami, Micmac, Mohawk, Mohegan, Moneton, Montagnais, Montauk, Mountain, Nanticoke, Narragansett, Nauset, Neutral, Niantic, Nipissing, Nipmuc, Nottaway, Ojibwa, Oneida, Onondaga, Ottawa, Passamaquoddy, Pennacook, Penobscot, Pequot, Susquehannock, Tobacco, Wampanoag, Wappinger, Winnebago
Significance: The woodlands of the Northeast provided basic building materials, such as saplings, brush, and bark, for a variety of buildings, including the wigwam and the longhouse
The buildings of the Northeast region Indians were constructed in woodlands, on mountains, along the Atlantic coast, and along inland lakeshores. Architectural styles were versatile, adapting to the particular climate and the social, religious, and economic needs of the particular tribe. Primarily used for protection, architecture also expressed the Indians’ way of life.
In the eastern portion of this region, the Iroquois and Huron built long communal buildings which were used year-round by clan groups. The longhouse, which varied in length and accommodated more than a hundred people, could be enlarged to make room for newly married couples. The pole-framed structure had a barrel or vaulted roof. Smoke holes placed about 25 feet apart represented the space given to an individual family. The smoke holes were also sources of light. Sleeping bunks ran along the sides of the building. Doors and storage areas were at each end.
A typical dwelling structure of Northeast region Indians was the wigwam. Its simple construction of a frame and covering could be easily moved. The basic structure of the wigwam was made of sapling frames bent into arches and tied together with fibercord and then covered with rolls of bark or reed mats. A central fire was used for cooking and heating, and smoke escaped through a parting of the mats. There were many different styles of the basic domed wigwam.
The Algonquin used a variety of bark-covered and mat-covered wigwams and barrel or gabled roofs as well as conical tipis using straight poles covered with bark. Along the North Atlantic coast, tipis were made by leaning straight poles vertically together; at the top, these poles met at the center point of a circular shape on the ground, on the circumference of which were positioned the poles’ ends. Sapling stringers were lashed to the frame for stability. They were sometimes insulated by laying grass over the frame and covering this with sheets of birchbark. The smoke hole was at the top of the tipi where the poles met, the floor was covered with fir boughs, and an opening in the side provided a doorway.
The Great Lakes region had several basic house types. These were the domed wigwam, used mainly in winter, the conical wigwam, an extension of the domed type by use of a ridge pole, and the summer square bark house, with vertical walls and a gabled roof. Ceremonial lodges and many-sided dance lodges were the largest structures built by the Great Lakes Indians. They were made with poles of cedar, considered to be sacred. A small religious structure called the shaking tent was a single-person hut. Used by the shaman, it was made of a sapling frame covered with bark or canvas, and it shook while the shaman was moving and speaking inside as he performed a rite.
Where the Northeast region came closer to the Plains region, the Indians also used the tipi type of dwelling, often covered with canvas or animal hides.
Bibliography
Bushnell, David I., Jr. Native Villages and Village Sites East of the Mississippi. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1919.
Kubiak, William. Great Lakes Indians: A Pictorial Guide. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Baker Book House, 1970.
Morgan, Lewis H. Houses and House-Life of the American Aborigines. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1965.
Nabokov, Peter, and Robert Easton. Native American Architecture. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989.
Russell, Howard S. Indian New England Before the Mayflower. Hanover, N.H.: University Press of New England, 1980.