Drawn on a hide or other material. In this short film by the u. S. Agency, lydia five thunder bluebird uses her uncles winter count to explain the tradition. In the Great Central plains of north america, there an opentime an prairie. It was the domain of many great indian tribes. The sioux were one of these tribes. [native american singing] there existence on the planes depended on to animals on two animals, the horse and the buffalo. They were able to pursue the buffalo, and from the buffalo they obtained their food, shelter, clothing, tools, weapons, and almost Everything Else that was needed for the tribes to survive and flourish. Each year of their past was recorded through a symbolic drawing and handed down as history from generation to. Eneration my name is lydia fire thunder bluebird. An oglala sioux. This is my great uncles winter count. In sioux it is called [speaking sioux language]. He was the one from the tribe who would make drawings of something important that happened each year. Each one of these pictures stands for one year. We did not use numbers like today. Symbol. Each year had a one person would be in charge of keeping this record for each band among the sioux. Every year when the winter came, the elders and the recorder of the winter count would meet and decide upon the right event that would be used for that year. Yearpicture stance for the stands for the year 1901, when there was a smallpox, dem smallpox epidemic. These symbols shall battles, while others show peace. Fellwas the year the stars , a meteor shower. One way to do a winter count. Efferent people did them in different ways. Long ago they used buffalo hides, but later they used canvas, cloth, paper or some other hide. Sometimes the symbols would circle around the hide and go inward. Others would start in the middle and go outward, or they may go across. [locomotive whistle] ofre are many symbols horses, because horses meant a great deal to the indian people. Camp, horse we could move hunt buffaloes. A person was respected by other horse. If they had a the winter count could only be understood by the one who put it down. When he would look at each symbol, he would remember many things from that year. [native american drumming] with this, he could keep a record of things that happened in our tribe. After my great uncle died, my Sister Angela kept the winter count going. And someoneone, else will have to keep it up. We know about our history from our winter count, and now children and grandchildren and god will know the history of our people. [native american singing]