The Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians (pronounced "Soo Saint Marie," Ojibwe: Baawiting Anishinaabeg), often called the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians or the Soo Tribe, is an officially recognized Native American tribe in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The tribe's headquarters is in Sault Ste. Marie, the largest city in the region, located on the St. Marys River.
This area was originally part of the homelands of the Oc̣eṭi Ṡakowiƞ (Dakota, Lakota, Nakoda, or Sioux), who were forced to move west by the Anishinaabe people migrating from the east coast. The Anishinaabe, including the Ojibwe or Chippewa, arrived in this area before Europeans arrived in the mid-to-late 16th century. They called the place Bawating, sometimes spelled Baawiting or Bahweting, which means "The Gathering Place" in the Ojibwe language. The Chippewa traded with other tribes and later with French, British, and American traders.
The Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians is the largest officially recognized tribe in Michigan, with about 10 times more members than the next largest tribe, the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. The tribe was officially recognized in 1972 and included five units across seven counties. In 1979, the tribal council added the Mackinac Band as members, nearly doubling the tribe's population. Money earned from the tribe's Kewadin Casinos has helped fund health centers and support education for tribe members.
Government
The Sault Tribe runs its own government, with elections held regularly for the chairperson and council members. Council members represent the tribe's five areas in seven counties across Michigan's Upper Peninsula. More than half of the tribe's members live outside these five areas but vote in the units where they have strong family or historical connections.
In 2012, Aaron A. Payment was elected chairman by the largest majority in the tribe's modern history. He first joined the Tribal Council in 1996. He became chairman in 2004, beating someone who had held the position for 17 years. In 2008, he did not win when trying to keep his job again, but he was re-elected in 2012, 2016, and 2020.
The tribe runs its own police department and tribal court.
History
For many years before Europeans arrived in North America, the ancestors of the Sault (Soo) Band were part of the large Lake Superior Band of Chippewa Indians. The Ojibwe, also called Chippewa in the United States, moved over many centuries from the Atlantic Coast to the area around the Great Lakes. They spoke the Ojibwe language, which is one of several languages in the Algonquian family.
Leaders from the Sault (Soo) Band and other groups signed treaties with the United States in 1820. The ancestors of the Sault Tribe are believed to have lived in the Great Lakes region since about 1200 CE. They were part of a large network that traded goods with other groups.
The modern Sault Tribe is descended from Ojibwe people who lived on Sugar Island in the St. Mary's River, which is located between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario, as well as nearby areas.
The Sault Tribe was officially recognized by the United States Commissioner of Indian Affairs on September 7, 1972. The tribe did not have a reservation from an earlier treaty. As part of the recognition process, the federal government took land in trust for the tribe through a deed dated May 17, 1973, and approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs on March 7, 1974.
The Commissioner of Indian Affairs declared the trust land to be a reservation for the tribe on February 20, 1975. This decision was published in the Federal Register on February 27, 1975. The reservation is located in the city of Sault Ste. Marie and in Sugar Island Township on Sugar Island (Sugar Island part at 46°28′19″N 84°12′44″W / 46.47194°N 84.21222°W / 46.47194; -84.21222), which is east of the city.
Enrollment
Since official recognition in 1972, the tribe's membership has grown. It currently has about 40,000 members officially listed. In the 21st century, many Sault Tribe members live outside the reservation in the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan. About one third live in the United States, Canada, and other parts of the world. At any time, many members are serving in the military.
In 1979, the Tribal Council passed a resolution allowing Mackinac Band members to join the tribe, which doubled the number of enrolled members. In the 21st century, the Sault Tribe includes more than 20 bands. There is also a strong and historic connection with Garden River First Nation, also known as Ketegaunseebee (Gitigaan-ziibi Anishinaabe in the Ojibwe language), an Ojibwa band located at Garden River 14 near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada.
Thousands of Mackinac Band members continue to work toward gaining independent federal recognition. They have formed the Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians, which has state recognition.
Economic development
In 1993, the tribe made an agreement with the state. Under this agreement, the tribe runs five casinos named Kewadin Casinos in Sault Ste. Marie, St. Ignace, Manistique, Christmas, and Hessel. The tribe also owns and manages hotels at the casino sites in Christmas, Sault Ste. Marie, and St. Ignace. These businesses make money, which helps the tribe.
The tribe once operated the Greektown Casino in Detroit, where they had the largest share of ownership. In 2008, during the Great Recession, the tribe asked for legal protection from bankruptcy. In June 2010, the Michigan Gaming Control Board voted unanimously to transfer ownership of the Greektown Casino to new investors. The tribe’s role in Greektown helped the state approve three casinos in Detroit, which created jobs and income for the region.
In 2011, the tribe considered building two more casinos in Romulus and Lansing, the state capital. These casinos were planned for land the tribe owned but had not yet been placed under federal trust. Both projects faced legal challenges. Michigan’s Attorney General argued that the Lansing project broke the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and the 1993 agreement with Governor John Engler. In September 2015, a judge ruled that the state could not block the Lansing casino. Lansing’s mayor supported the project, stating it would create thousands of jobs and fund college scholarships for city students. The casino was planned near the Lansing Center, close to the state capitol. The Department of the Interior will place the land, purchased by the Sault Tribe from Lansing, into federal trust.
Services
The tribe has used money from its casino and hotel to build better homes, schools, and health services for its people. It runs six health centers in Sault Ste. Marie, St. Ignace, Manistique, Munising, Newberry, and Hessel. The tribe also supports education by providing college scholarships for its members.
The tribe helped create the Joseph K. Lumsden Bahweting Anishnaabe Public School Academy in Sault Ste. Marie. This school operates as both a Bureau of Indian Affairs school and a Michigan charter school. It was started to give students an alternative to Sault Ste. Marie Area Schools, where many students from the Sault Tribe of Chippewa Indians had high dropout rates. In 1998, the school was renamed to honor Joseph K. Lumsden, a tribal leader who helped build the tribe’s first homes, schools, and health programs.
The school is open to all students in the area. It teaches students about the Anishnaabe language, traditions, and values. Bahweting received the Governor of Michigan’s Gold Apple Award for improving student test scores on the Michigan Education Assessment Program (MEAP). It also won a Title I Distinguished School Award from the U.S. Department of Education, joining 95 other schools nationwide out of 48,000 Title I schools.
The tribe also built the Chi Mukwa (Big Bear) Recreation Center in Sault Ste. Marie. The center has Olympic-sized ice rinks, a basketball court, a volleyball court, an aerobics room, and fitness areas.
The tribe publishes a monthly newspaper called Win Awenen Nisitotung, which means “he/she/or one who well or fully understands” in Ojibwe. The newspaper is often called the WAN.
The tribe owns four Midjim convenience stores in Sault Ste. Marie, St. Ignace, Christmas, and Marquette. These stores offer lower prices on gasoline and cigarettes for tribal members.