What Clothes Did the Pueblo Indians Wear?
In the early days, Pueblo Indian men wore very little clothing, whereas the women wore long dress-like garments that covered their right shoulder, with the left exposed. Missionaries later influenced the female garments to make them more modest.
To cover themselves, Pueblo Indian men wore short kilts or breechcloths. Women wore mantas, which were made from cotton and fastened at the right shoulder. Both men and women wore deerskin moccasins on their feet, and women would wear painted moccasins and deerskin shin garments for weddings. When missionaries began interacting with Pueblo communities in the early 1900s, they believed the women’s garments were not modest enough. As such, they introduced blouses for them to wear beneath their usual garments.
