Tipi

Lore & Background

The tipi is a portable, durable structure that provides warmth in winter, coolness in summer, and dryness during heavy rains. It can be disassembled and packed away quickly, which was historically important to Plains Indians with their at-times nomadic lifestyle. A typical family tipi has two adjustable smoke flaps, multiple lodge poles (historically 12 to 25 feet long), and a detachable cover. Lewis H. Morgan noted that tipi frames consisted of 13 to 15 poles, tied together at the small ends, raised upright with a twist, and then covered with sewn buffalo hides secured with stakes. The door and camp openings generally face east toward the sunrise.

Historically, most tipis in a village were not painted. Painted tipis often depicted noteworthy historical battles and featured geometric portrayals of celestial bodies and animal designs. Some tipis were painted to depict personal experiences such as war, hunting, a dream, or vision. During the later reservation era, retired warriors would paint on canvas tipis depicting different events in tribal history, including battles with Americans. He Nupa Wanica (Joseph No Two Horns), a Hunkpapa Lakota warrior who fought in 40 battles including the Battle of the Little Bighorn, is known for his many tipi paintings now in museums.

Tribes today use the tipi as a means to convey traditional, scientific, and psychological teachings. The Siksika (Blackfoot) nation's worldview is based on the shape of a tipi, which inspired Maslow's hierarchy of needs teachings. In Cree communities, the tipi can represent the power of women and their role as the foundation of the family unit. In Lakota communities, youth are taught how to assemble tipis, with each pole representing different traditional virtues, and are simultaneously taught geometry and teamwork.

Reader's Guide

The tipi is a significant cultural and historical structure for many Indigenous peoples of North America, particularly those of the Plains and Plateau regions. Its design—conical with smoke flaps—allows for efficient heating and cooking with an open fire, while its portability supported the nomadic lifestyle of bison hunters. The tipi is often stereotypically associated with all Native Americans, but this is inaccurate, as many other cultures used different dwellings such as pueblos, wigwams, hogans, chickees, and longhouses. The spelling 'tipi' is a loanword from Dakota and Lakota languages and is the most common spelling in Canadian English, while 'tepee' is more common in American English dictionaries. Today, tipis are primarily used for ceremonial purposes, and they continue to convey traditional teachings about community, geometry, and virtues. The tipi's image appears on almost all Dakota/Lakota tribal flags or seals, underscoring its enduring cultural importance.

Did You Know?

• The tipi is distinguished from other conical tents by the smoke flaps at the top.
• Contrary to a common misconception, the tipi image is not featured on almost all Dakota/Lakota tribal flags or seals; many such flags and seals do not include a tipi.

Origins & Design Innovation

Frank A. Redford conceived the first Wigwam Village in 1933 in Horse Cave, Kentucky, by surrounding a museum-shop that housed his Native American artifact collection with tipi-shaped guest units. He formalized his creative vision by filing a patent application on December 17, 1935, and receiving Design Patent 98,617 on February 18, 1936. The original design drawing notably incorporated a swastika, which at that era was commonly associated with Native American symbolism or worn as a good-luck charm. Between 1933 and 1949, seven distinct Wigwam Villages were constructed across the United States. Redford's concept was distinctive in its era—individual conical structures serving as private lodging, arranged around a communal center. The design used steel, lath, and plaster construction in the original Kentucky locations, though later iterations like the Alabama village substituted wood, felt, and canvas treated with linseed oil. Redford's patent and naming rights became the foundation for a chain that would eventually stretch from Kentucky to California.

The Surviving Villages & Their Architecture

Only three of the original seven Wigwam Villages endure today, and all three hold National Register of Historic Places listings. The Cave City, Kentucky location, designated Wigwam Village #2 and listed on March 16, 1988, features fifteen tipi-shaped guest rooms arranged in a semicircle around a larger concrete-and-steel central structure that once housed a restaurant. Each unit measures 14 feet in base diameter and 32 feet in height, with a small bathroom behind the main room. The Holbrook, Arizona property, listed as Wigwam Village #6 in 2002, arranges its fifteen units in a square configuration with the office occupying the fourth side. The San Bernardino, California motel, listed as Wigwam Village #7 in 2012, completes the trio. All three maintain original restored hickory furniture, window-mounted air conditioning, and deliberately omit telephones to preserve the period atmosphere, while offering modern amenities like cable or satellite TV and internet access.

The Route 66 Connection & Cultural Legacy

Two of the three surviving Wigwam Villages sit along the legendary U.S. Route 66 corridor, cementing their place in American road-trip mythology. The Holbrook, Arizona property at 811 West Hopi Drive sits within easy reach of Petrified Forest National Park, Meteor Crater, and the Grand Canyon, making it a natural stop for cross-country travelers. The San Bernardino, California location anchors the chain's western terminus. The Arizona motel's history is particularly rich: owner Chester E. Lewis first encountered the distinctive tipi design while passing through Cave City in 1938, then secured Redford's design rights through an unusual royalty arrangement in which coin-operated radios would send every dime to Redford for thirty minutes of play. Today, vintage automobiles from the 1960s and earlier dot the parking areas, and small green metal benches etched with period text reinforce the nostalgic atmosphere. The motels' very naming convention—calling each unit a wigwam rather than a room, tepee, or cabin—preserves a deliberate linguistic choice that distinguishes them from conventional lodging.

The Lost Villages & Their Fates

Four of the original seven Wigwam Villages have been lost to time, each with a distinct story. Village #1 in Horse Cave, Kentucky, closed in 1935 when its successor opened nearby, operated under various names, and was finally razed in 1982. Village #3 in Metairie, Louisiana, built in 1940 with a cocktail bar, souvenir shop, and Esso service station, went out of business in 1954, leaving behind very little documentation. Village #4 in Orlando, Florida, was the largest at 27 guest rooms in horseshoe-shaped structures plus a central pool, and billed itself as the city's largest and finest motel. When it was razed in 1974, a dramatic attempt to airlift some tipis by helicopter to a YMCA summer camp failed because the structures were too heavy; a Days Inn, and later a 330-room Vacation Lodge, replaced the site, with only the swimming pool surviving. Village #5 in Bessemer, Alabama, fell into ruin after closing in 1964, with its restaurant reportedly standing until 1970 before demolition.

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