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xander_C t1_j76mloz wrote

Did the Native Americans in the Great Lakes and Plains regions have access to salt?

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elmonoenano t1_j78fqti wrote

Yes. There's a great book you might want to check out called Masters of Empire about the Anishinaabe people, they include the Ojibwe, Odawa, Algonquin, Mississaguas among others. The book is by Michael McDonnell. It's a fascinating book that explains their extensive trade networks, their conflicts with their neighbors and how they played the English, French and Iriquois off each other to protect their interests.

But they're trading networks went all the way down the Mississippi and to the coast. They'd have access to salt from the salt mines in Southern Illinois and the various salt creeks like the other poster mentioned, but also from the Hudson bay and hypothetically, if it had been necessary, from the gulf coast.

There's a new book that came out last year called Seeing Red by Michael Witgen that picks up after the period described in Masters of Empire that looks good too, if you're interested in this area of the world.

Here's a great talk with McDonnel at the James Madison lecture series. https://youtu.be/bodjl3rXWxw

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Bashstash01 t1_j76p0lb wrote

They did indeed use salt as a condiment. They got it from places like saline inland lakes and highland springs.

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Leftfeet t1_j784knr wrote

There are a lot of "salt Creek"s in the region. Most are nam d Salt Creek because of the natural salt licks along their banks. A quick Google search I found several papers discussing salt usage and harvesting in the Ohio River valley.

I know from having lived in Illinois a lot that the Rock River, Fox River, Vermilion River and several others have natural salt licks. What is now Sterling, IL was a Sauk village before European settlers. Part of why they settled there was access to salt and the game it attracted. Lincoln, IL along a Salt Creek is the same, although it was a Kickapoo village. Danville IL as well along the Vermilion River.

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xander_C t1_j78gvjt wrote

I was aware of the access in Illinois, but I didn't think that would give the kind of quantity that might allow export as far as, say, modern Nebraska?

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Leftfeet t1_j78hys2 wrote

I don't know of any widespread trade of salt in pre Columbian Midwest. However, salt is readily available across most of it from my understanding. There are several salt mines around the great lakes currently, the biggest I believe being under lake Erie. If I'm not mistaken there was also a lot of salt brought with the glaciers, which is why so many rivers in Illinois have consistent salt licks along their banks. I don't know nearly as much about the plains regions west of the Mississippi, but would guess that it's similar.

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phillipgoodrich t1_j78wmpr wrote

Watch for map references to "licks." These are natural salt sources, typically from springs/brooks that are partially dry. In central Missouri, there are "Booneslick" everything: roads, trails, libraries, etc. All refer to a natural "salt lick" owned and operated by Daniel Boone and his kin through Nathan, just west of present-day Columbia, MO. But "licks" are found all over the forest lands of the midwest.

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Well_why_not1953 t1_j78ut6s wrote

Just to add what others are saying, don't forget trade. Pre-Columbian Indians had extensive trade networks to obtain what they could not get locally. Items from the great lakes area have been found all the way to the Gulf Coast and vice versa. Trade in the southern plains extended all the way to South America and the Pacific coast Salt was a great trade item.

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