Many of us know how to start a fire with a lighter, matches or even a variety of other tools. We can do this as long as we have some wood to help the fire burn well. However, sometimes a pile of wood might not always be around. These three methods the pioneer used to build a fire just might save your life when you have no other options!
The Three Methods The Pioneers Used Include:
1. Buffalo chips/cattle manure
Buffalo chips is a reference to the dried manure of buffalo that once dotted our grasslands. Once dubbed as “Plains oak”, buffalo chips were widely used as fire fuel for generations on the plains. When cattle were brought north, their manure also was collected for the same purpose. Both sources were a very common source of fuel, and actually offered several advantages to wood fires. For starters, in such a dry environment, buffalo chips don’t throw sparks like wood fires tend to do. Manure fuels smolder more than they actually burn. The smoldering actually helps control the fire, rather than constantly setting the prairie ablaze.2. Woody shrubs
Although there is a lack of trees on the Great Plains, there are locations with an abundance of woody shrubs. Sage and other woody shrubs should not be overlooked for their potential as a fuel source. As with buffalo chips, small shrubs offer the advantage of keeping a fire small.
3. Animal fat
A final alternative fire fuel people utilized is animal fat. In the past, animals like bear provided not only meat for the larder, but fire fuel, such as for burning lamps. If the pioneers or Native Americans happened to be in an area devoid of animal manure or shrubs, fat would have been a viable option.
In my own experience, I’ve used raccoon fat as a fuel source while building a campfire. I can testify to its ability to put out some heat. A word of caution, though: Unlike the previously mentioned fuels, fat burns extremely hot and very fast.
As you can see, these ways of starting a fire without wood are really effective. You can use buffalo chips and they won't give us sparks like wood normally does. These fires actually smolder more which makes it easier to control the fire. You can use woody shrubs such as sage other shrubs. These fires might be small but they will work. Finally, you can use animal fat that burns hot and very fast. If you don't have wood available when you are trying to survive, these methods might just be your best way to build a fire.
To find out more about how the pioneers built fires, you can go to:
Woody shrubs are very bad a burning. They are actually designed not to catch fire. Even though the bark is flakey they just don’t light. They are great if you are trying to make smoke in a already lit fire though.