Description
In the past, coming from their winter camps, the Meskwaki went to their sugar camps. There they spent a few weeks making maple syrup and sugar. Maple syrup and sugar was made by the collection of maple sap. The collection of the sap was done in late winter or early spring when the sap began to flow. Box elder sap spouts and slippery elm receptacles were made to catch the sap. After the sap was collected, it was boiled until the syrup was made. Some syrup was poured into large pots and a little deer tallow was added. This was then let to boil until it reached a stage where it popped and bubbled. It was then placed in a large knot bowl and stirred with a heavy wooden ladle and allowed to crystallize. With this a sugar was made and molded into sugar cakes. A powdered sugar was also made. After making the syrup and the sugar the Sugar camp, the Meskwaki returned to the village.
On Wednesday, March 14, and Thursday, March 15, 2018, team members from Meskwaki Economic Development set up a camp near the Meskwaki Settlement School campus to demonstrate the boiling process of making maple syrup. Students filtered in and out throughout both days to check out the process.
Source-Dependent Questions
- Look closely at all of the photos. How do the Meskwaki collect the sap? What are the other parts of the maple syrup making process?
- Why would the Meskwaki still make maple syrup today?
Citation Information
March 2018. Courtesy of Meskwaki Nation