Have wigwam, will travel

DIXON – If you have driven past the intersection of Brinton and Fellows in Dixon, you may have seen an explosion from the past.

Alan Harrison has been rebuilding a wigwam, the likes that Native Americans would have worn in the area. Willow branches and time have turned the already-crowded corner into a curio as passersby gaze, pause, and yell questions from their open windows.

“I just like educating people,” said Harrison, a Faith Christian math teacher when he’s not reconstructing symbols from the past.

Harrison has had an interest in Native American culture since he was a child.

“I was fascinated by their culture. So I started learning how they lived and their skills, like flint nap and bow and arrow making.” His immersion in learning about this culture has earned him invitations to museums, schools and scout groups to share his knowledge. “I’m not the best arrowhead maker, but definitely the best on the block,” Harrison said with a laugh.

I was fascinated by their culture. So I started learning how they lived and their skills, like flint nap and bow and arrow making.”

— alan harrison

The 22-foot long wigwam or longhouse is made of willow branches and bound with bark and screws. Hardware is required as the frame will travel via trailer. Split telephone poles anchor it together. Grass and canvas mats cover everything while bark would have been used in the original designs.

“There’s a spot that I covered with bark to make it authentic,” Harrison said. Two bark-covered doors open upwards to access the interior which has a large leather-covered sleeping area at one end and plenty of seating or sleeping space on either side of the longhouse.

Wife Dawn and Alan will unveil the wigwam in the coming weeks at Galesburg Heritage Days and later at reunions and other historic gatherings.