Cordage
And Netting




Netting made out of cordage, was used for hunting and fishing.

Seasonal runs of salmon and trout were very import sources of food for the The People. The problem was getting the fish out of the river and into the fire.

Cordage tied with knots into a strong net solved the problem.
Nets were also used for hunting rabbits in the early winter after they were fat and their fur thick and warm.

Netting was made by tying knots with the cordage to form a mesh, supported by a Margin Cord Line, which would catch and hold the animal or fish.

The Shoshoni People used Scoop Nets as they stood on platforms to fish in the
Snake River near Fort Hall.






Illustration: Julian Steward, 1943



The Bannock People used a unique net set in the bottom of a stream in shallow water. The two poles would wobble when fish had been trapped
in the netting, letting the fishermen
know that a catch was waiting

                                                    Illustration: Julian Steward, 1943

Seine Nets were used on the Snake
River near Fort Fall for fishing more
than small catches of fish. In 1811,
a trapper with the Astoria Party saw
Shoshoni People using a seine net
made from cordage made of stinging nettle.


Illustration: Julian Steward, 1943

The Bannock People made seine nets such as the one in the illustration above that were fifty to sixty feet long and fifteen feet wide. On either end was a pole for support, on the top margin wooden floats kept the netting above the water, while stone sinkers held the netting to the river bottom.

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