This light-colored, rough rice is gathered with canoe and wooden beaters, then hulled by hand or foot during ceremonial dances. Wild rice processed in this manner is confined to small batches and is generally unavailable to the public. The darker, larger rice on the right is from Saskatchewan and is a Native American commercial product. This rice is gathered with canoe or modern airboats and turns darker during its more industrialized processing procedure. It is superior to other kinds of commercial wild rice found in supermarkets and packaged food.
Rice is shown actual size.
By the 18th-century Europeans were well established along the East Coast of North America, but their influence did not stop there. As Native American populations were crowded by the expanding European population, many began to move to the west. And as they moved to the west resident populations were, in turn, displaced generally westward ahead of them. In Minnesota the Dakotah and Lakota populations moved south and southwest respectively. The Lakota moved entirely out onto the Plains where a new culture which relied on hunting Bison from horseback was evolving.