Tanning

We’re not talking about lying under the sun in the hopes of roasting your skin. The Native Americans developed tanning methods for leather, which people still use today. They typically used fatty animal tissues like the brain, liver, and fat to tan the hides. Sometimes, they even kept the fur for decorative purposes. They would even go so far as to soak the skin in a solution of the animal’s brain, and then roast the skin over a fire (Sky Above Us).

Kayaks

Those small, narrow boats you take out onto lakes and rivers are all thanks to the Native Americans, who developed the original concept. But they used natural materials like whalebone and wood. They then concealed the opening with animal hides. Even though we use manmade materials now, the design is more or less the same. Different tribes could recognize each other based on the profile of their canoes. They divided the canoes into three categories, bark canoes, plank canoes, and dugout canoes. The Native Americans also used round-shaped bull boats to transport goods by the river and were more typically used by women (Native Languages).

Hammocks

Camping has never been easier, all thanks to hammocks. Why sleep on the ground when you can gently float between two supportive trees? The Native Americans had the same thought, which is why they invented the hammock. Native Americans typically wove them from the hammock tree, hence the name “hammock.” Christopher Colombus arrived in the Caribbean, only to find the Natives resting on bes made of cotton netting, suspended between two trees. This inspired European sailors to use them as beds on ships (Underneath the Mango Tree).