Historic Hood River
Ute Teepees
10-10-2018
Notes
I’ve passed over this photo many times because I had no idea where it was taken. I should have looked more carefully since it is labeled “398. Ute Teepees, copyright 1899 Smith-Hassell Denver.” I’ve found a few references to “Smith-Hassell Company” from this era, but no photographs like this.
Buzz
Looks like an outhouse on the right partially hidden in the brush.
L.E.
It is theorized that the Ute people bent trees, so they would grow as trail markers.
In this photo it looks like they did a little more than bend them. Looks like they uprooted them right out of the ground.
Kenn
‘These are usefull TPs, two photos ago there was no peak and no smoke flap, non heated and no shelter from rain~
Michael H
This is a typical Ute camp of the late 19th century. The brush shelter is very typical of the Utes and served as kind of a sunshade in semi-arid locations they also served a living shelters and sometime had canvas or hide coverings. I have a very similar photo by Smith-Hassley. The Ute were somewhat dispersed from high altitude to high desert location at this point