The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians (Ojibwe: Gichi-wiikwedong Odaawaag miina ojibweg) is a federally recognized Native American tribe located in northwest Michigan on the Leelanau Peninsula. Sandra Witherspoon is the current tribal chairperson, elected in May 2024 for a four-year term after taking over from David Arroyo, who served one term from 2020 to 2024
Names
The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians includes members of the Odaawaa/Odawa (Ottawa), the Ojibwe (Ojibwa/Chippewa), and the Boodewaadami/Bodéwadmi (Potawatomi) peoples. They call themselves the Anishinaabeg or the Three Fires Confederacy and were historically part of this group.
Federal recognition
In 1934 and 1943, the tribe asked the federal government for official recognition, but their requests were denied. In 1978, Dodie Harris Chambers helped lead a movement to gain recognition. On May 27, 1980, the tribe was officially recognized. The Grand Traverse Band is the first federally recognized tribe of Odawa people in Michigan. They were among the first tribes in the United States to own a casino, following new gaming laws passed in the 1980s.
History
Ottawa, Chippewa, and Potawatomi Indians are groups of people who speak Algonquian languages. Over time, they moved from the Atlantic coast and settled near the Great Lakes in Canada and the Midwest of what is now the United States, including areas in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Today, these groups have federally recognized reservations, or special lands set aside for them, only in Canada, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. During the 19th century, they were forced to give up most of their land to the governments of Canada and the United States because of pressure from European-American and Canadian settlers.
The name "Ottawa," also called "Odawa" or "Odawu," is thought to come from an Algonquian word meaning "trader." It was mistakenly recorded as meaning "people of the bulrush," but there is a specific Odawa term for a particular group that refers to this.
Historically, members of this tribe are descendants of and political successors to nine Ottawa bands that signed treaties in 1836 and 1855. These treaties are connected to a total of 19 bands listed as the Grand River Band Ottawa. After the 1855 Treaty, all Ottawa Bands located from the Manistee River south to Grand River, near or on the eastern shores of Lake Michigan, were moved to reservation lands in Mason and Oceana counties.
The permanent villages of the Grand River bands of Ottawa, including the nine bands whose descendants make up the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, were located along the Grand, Thornapple, Flat, White, Père Marquette, and Big and Little Manistee rivers in Michigan’s western Lower Peninsula.
The Ottawa and Chippewa Treaty of Detroit was signed in 1855 and created an Ottawa/Chippewa nation to establish a reservation for them.
The Chippewa, also known as Ojibwe, Ojibway, Chippeway, or Anishinaabe, are the largest Native American group north of the Rio Grande. Their population is divided between Canada, where they are called Ojibwe, and the United States. The Bay Mills Indian Community is located on the land of the Sault Ste. Marie band of Chippewa, which originally lived on both sides of what became the U.S.-Canada border. After the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, the Bay Mills Indian Community organized to create a form of government.
Today
Members come from the nine historic groups of Ottawa (Odawa) and Chippewa (called Ojibwe in Canada) peoples who lived in northern Michigan and signed agreements with the federal government. These groups followed the 19 groups that were recorded in this area before them.
The tribe’s government includes a group of leaders chosen by the people. This group has a tribal chair and six council members. These leaders are elected by the members of the Grand Traverse Band. However, most members of the Grand Traverse Band are not allowed to vote in elections. Most other tribes in Michigan let all their members vote. The band has control over programs, money, and daily operations. The council also chooses judges who help decide legal cases, such as criminal, family, and civil matters, along with state courts.
The water resources in the 1855 reservation area include Grand Traverse Bay, the eastern part of Michigan, Lake Leelanau, Elk Lake, and their watersheds. Other important natural resources include forests that are not yet developed and areas used for traditional hunting, fishing, and gathering plants.
The Grand Traverse Band’s Natural Resources Department includes a manager, people who protect wildlife, experts who study fish in the Great Lakes, experts who study fish and animals, staff who check water and the environment, and a person who manages the office.
Reservation
The Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians has a territory called the Grand Traverse Indian Reservation (45°01′13″N 85°36′22″W / 45.02028°N 85.60611°W / 45.02028; -85.60611). This reservation was established by the United States Secretary of the Interior on May 27, 1980, and includes lands owned by the Band. The Band’s Treaty Ceded Territories from the 1836 Treaty cover an area stretching from the Grand River to the Alpena region northward and the eastern part of the Upper Peninsula from the Chocolay River eastward. About 55% of the reservation is located in several separate land areas in eastern Suttons Bay Township, Leelanau County, Michigan.
There are also five smaller land areas in four other counties: one in southern Benzonia Township, Benzie County; two in southern Helena Township, Antrim County; one in eastern Acme Township, Grand Traverse County; and one in southwestern Eveline Township, Charlevoix County. The total land area of the reservation and off-reservation trust land is 2.539 km² (0.9804 square miles, or 627.46 acres). According to the 2000 census, the reservation had 545 residents, and 80% of them identified as fully Native American. The main reservation and six-county service area include Antrim, Benzie, Charlevoix, Grand Traverse, Leelanau, and Manistee counties. The Band’s federal land base is about 1,100 acres (4.5 km²) spread across the service area, and the Band has a total of 3,985 members. Approximately 1,610 of these members live in the tribal areas.
Eyaawing Museum
The Eyaawing Museum and Cultural Center is located in Peshawbestown, Michigan. It was opened in 2009 by the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. The museum serves as a heritage and cultural center. Inside, there is a gift shop that sells works made by tribal artists and craftspeople. The museum also has educational materials, maps, and books.
Anthropological study
A major study about the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians was conducted by Jane Willetts Ettawageshik. She spent about two years researching within the community. During her study, she recorded Anishinaabe stories that describe how the Anishinaabe people connected with their land, their people, and the ways they shared their values, beliefs, and histories in Northern Michigan. These stories were later translated into a book titled "Ottawa Stories from the Springs, Anishinaabe dibaadjimowinan wodi gaa binjibaamigak wodi mookodjiwong e zhinikaadek" by Howard Webkamigad.
Notable tribal members
- Pun Plamondon, White Panther activist and storyteller
- Kathleen R. Johnson, geologist and scientist who studies ancient climates
- Derek Bailey, tribal chairman