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      This section of Forests of Illinois is about how Native Americans used the forests of the state. Illinois forests were an important source of foods, medicines, fuel, and building materials for Native Americans. 

Resource for food
One of the most important uses of the forests was as food source. Native Americans used fire as a hunting tool to drive large game animals that lived in the forest. They gathered and ate nuts, fruits, seeds, roots, leaves, and whole plants from the forest. Later, they learned to cultivate some of the plants.

Paw Paw fruits
Pawpaw fruits

Resource for medications
Native Americans used a variety of forest plants to make medicines that treated many different illnesses. 

Resource for Materials
Native Americans used wood, leaves, stems, and bark for making everything from housing to the tools and utensils they used in their daily lives. Their use of forest resources and fire influenced the distribution of forest and prairie in Illinois. 

   
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