I don't know if this will help, but here is a link to an image of Jackson Sundown's buffalo hide tipi:
Plateau TipiThis photo obviously dates well after the 1840-1865 timeframe that interests us here, but on the other hand it does show an authentic buffalo hide tipi, which was already old when the picture was taken circa 1916, evidently at the Pendleton Round-Up. The man on the left is Roy Bishop, who was (I think) involved with Pendleton Woolen Mills as well as the Round-Up, and the man on the right is Jackson Sundown, one of the greatest, if not
the greatest bronc rider of all time. Sundown was born in 1863, so he would have been well into his fifties when this picture was taken.
Anyway, I laid a ruler on the computer screen and determined as well as I could that the tipi is about twice Sundown's height, looking through the poles and measuring to the top of the lodgeskins but not the smoke flaps. If we figure Sundown was close to six feet tall, the tipi would be in the neighborhood of twelve feet. I think this was probably about average for hide tipis.
As an aside, I recently read
The Arctic Prairies, by Ernest Thompson Seton. The Chipewyan Indians with whom he stayed were still using portable lodges similar to plains Indian tipis, although theirs were likely made of caribou hide. Seton pointed out that all of the Indian camps were swarming with dogs, and the dogs liked to chew on the hide covers. This was one reason the people started using canvas as soon as they could get it, as the dogs were less likely to chew the canvas. Seton also reported the dogs would frequently urinate on tents and lodges, whether canvas or hide. The smell inside the structure was almost overpowering. I suspect plains Indian tipis suffered the same fate.
One of those little historic details reenactors probably don't want to incorporate into their period camps...
Best regards,
Crooked River Bob