As with so many of the Native women of history who left a lasting mark on culture and society, Datsolalee is surrounded by confusion and conflicting information in several areas of her life.   She was born in 1835, but some accounts place her birth in the Carson Valley of Nevada near Sheridan, while others say she was born near Woodfords, California.  A full blood Washo, she was named Dabuda by her parents and, as she grew, she was given the nickname of "wide hips".  Some say this name was given to her by Dr. S.L. Lee of Carson City for she was a woman of very generous proportions indeed.  Her name has been spelled as Datsolalee, Datsolali and Datsalalee, but there is no question that the woman referred to, regardless of the spelling, is the innovative and remarkable Washo basket weaver who impacted this art form for all time.

Datsolalee married a Washo man named Assu, and they had two children together.  Assu died not too long after the birth of their second child, and some accounts report that the two children died as well.  There is no further mention of these children, or of Datsolalee ever having more children.   At 33, Datsolalee married Charley Keyser, or Kizer, a Washo-Miwok craftsman, and she was given the name Louisa.

Even as a young girl, it became obvious to all that Datsolalee was unusually gifted in basket weaving.  Always devout in her tribal beliefs, and faithful in her practice of tribal practices and ceremonies, she sought visions early in her life as all Washo children are taught to do.  She attributes her most outstanding basket designs to her visions.  Her use of the Washo colors of red-brown, black and tan, and the weaving materials of cured fern fibers and willow reed, produced unusual patterns not seen before.  As she grew and met crafts people of the Maidu and Pomo tribes, she incorporated some of those techniques into her art which created revolutionary designs  while holding true to the traditional Washo style.   It is difficult to believe that the sophistication of her creations was accomplished using shards of broken glass, her teeth, fingernails and even lids from tin cans to shave and shape the tiny splints of her weaving materials.  She was able to weave 30 stitches to the inch, and her most famous basket, named "Myriads of Stars Shine Over the Graves of Our Ancestors", contains more than 56,590 stitches.

Shortly after her marriage to Charley Keyser, Datsolalee's basket work caught the eye of Amy Cohn of Carson City.  Mr. and Mrs. Cohn hired Datsolalee as a laundress, with Charley doing odd jobs as needed.  The Cohns proposed that they would provide all the Keyser's needs, including housing, food, clothing and the things necessary for a comfortable life, with the condition that the Cohns would own all baskets created by Datsolalee.  The proposal was accepted and, as a result, Datsolalee never received any money from the sale of her exquisite creations.  She was taken to the St. Louis Exposition in 1919 where she exhibited her work and gave demonstrations of her weaving.  However, she did not like the crowds, noise and confusion, and declined any further public appearances.

Datsolalee died in 1925 at the age of 90, in the house which had been provided by the Cohns.