Moccasins
As with contemporary shoes, there is a great variety in the type, style, and decoration of moccasins. Some of the variations reflect tribal traditions and affiliations, while others reveal certain geographic locations or seasonal adaptations.
One-piece, soft-soled moccasins are more indicative of Woodlands peoples. Hard-sole moccasins made from rawhide came about during the early-to mid-nineteenth century and were more favored on the Northern Plains and Plateau.
Among Southern and Central Plains tribes, women combined moccasins and leggings into a one-piece footwear referred to as “high tops,” “leggings,” “boots” or “leg moccasins.
Objects
![Women’s “High Top” Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/1983.6.40.jpg)
Women’s “High Top” Moccasins
Central Plains, Cheyenne/Arapaho
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/1982.27.06.jpg)
Moccasins
Northern Plains, Santee
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/2002.154.1.jpg)
Moccasins
Northern Plains, Lakota
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/1969.158.02.jpg)
Moccasins
Northern Plains, Lakota
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/h.84.07.jpg)
Moccasins
Southern Plains, Delaware
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/1983.06.55.jpg)
Moccasins
Northern Plains, Blackfoot
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/h.58.03.jpg)
Moccasins
Subarctic, Kutchin (Yukon Territory, Canada)
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/1991.1.1464.jpg)
Moccasins
Southwest, Diné (Navajo)
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/h.156-1.jpg)
Moccasins
Plateau, Shoshone
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/1993.23.51.jpg)
Moccasins
Southern Plains, Kiowa
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/1991.01.1469.jpg)
Moccasins
Great Basin, Ute
![Women’s “High Top” Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/1983.06.39.jpg)
Women’s “High Top” Moccasins
Southwest, Apache
![Moccasins](/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/1977.7.55.jpg)
Moccasins
Northern Plains, Assiniboine