Lone Dog's Winter Count
Photo courtesy of South Dakota State Historical Society

 
     Lone Dog, a Nakota, kept his winter count from 1800 to 1871. His winter count burned up in a fire, but copies were made before this happened. The South Dakota State Historical Society has a copy of Lone Dog’s winter count. It was drawn on cowhide. Each picture records an event. It tells about many things. It shows a meteor shower and an outbreak of measles. It records a flood on the Missouri River. The keeper of the winter count had to remember what each picture meant. It was his job to tell the stories to others.

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