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L'Anse Indian Reservation Gakiiwe’onaning Keweenaw Bay Indian Community | |
|---|---|
 Locations withinBaraga County (left) andMarquette County (right) | |
 Location within the State of Michigan | |
| Coordinates:46°46′36″N88°29′46″W / 46.77667°N 88.49611°W /46.77667; -88.49611 | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Michigan |
| Counties | Baraga andMarquette |
| Established | 1854 |
| Re-establishment | 1934 (tribal government) |
| Government | |
| • Governing Body | Tribal Council of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community |
| • President | Doreen G. Blaker[1] |
| • Vice President | Rodney Loonsfoot |
| Area | |
• Total | 110.06 sq mi (285.1 km2) |
| • Land | 91.98 sq mi (238.2 km2) |
| • Water | 18.08 sq mi (46.8 km2) 16.4% |
| (includes off-reservation trust land) | |
| Population | |
• Total | 3,396 |
| • Density | 36.9/sq mi (14.3/km2) |
| (includes off-reservation trust land) | |
| Time zone | UTC-5 (Eastern (EST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-4 (EDT) |
| Website | http://www.kbic-nsn.gov/ |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| Enrolled members: 3,159 (1999) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
 United States (Michigan) | |
| Languages | |
| English,Ojibwe | |
| Religion | |
| Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Odawa,Potawatomie |
TheL'Anse Indian Reservation is the land base of the federally recognizedKeweenaw Bay Indian Community (Ojibwe:Gakiiwe’onaning) of the historicLake Superior Band of Chippewa Indians. (The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community was defined in 1934 by theIndian Reorganization Act as the successor apparent of the L’Anse and Ontonagon bands).[4] The reservation is located primarily in two non-contiguous sections on either side of theKeweenaw Bay inBaraga County in theUpper Peninsula of theU.S. state ofMichigan. The Keweenaw Bay Community also manages the separateOntonagon Indian Reservation.[5]
As of 2020, the L'Anse reservation had a land area of 91.98 square miles (58,870 acres; 238.2 km2), includingoff-reservation trust land.[2] The population living on the reservation was 3,396 in the2020 census.[3] Most of the village ofBaraga and part of the village ofL'Anse are on reservation land. In 1999, tribal enrollment was 3,159 according to theBureau of Indian Affairs1999 Labor Force Report.
This area was historically the territory of the L'Anse Band of theLake Superior Band of Chippewa Indians, a large, decentralized group of loosely associated bands around southern Lake Superior.
The European-American community of L'Anse developed around a Frenchfur trading post set up in colonial times at the site of an Ojibwa village on the bay. It continued to develop after the British took control of New France following theSeven Years' War. After theWar of 1812 between Britain and the United States, negotiations settled the border with Canada, and this area became part of the United States.
As European-American settlers moved into Michigan in the early 19th century, the United States increased pressure on the Lake Superior Band of Ojibwa to cede their lands to allow unrestricted development. TheTreaty of 1842, by which the Chippewa ceded lands to the federal government, was one of the largest land cession agreements ever made between the U.S. federal government and Indian tribes. It includes provisions and stipulations that the Chippewa retain their rights to fish, hunt and gather on these ceded lands.
The L’Anse Reservation is both the oldest and largest reservation in Michigan. It was established under theChippewa Treaty of 1854. TheUnited States Supreme Court has interpreted this treaty as creating permanent homelands for the Chippewa (OjibwaAnishnaabeg) band signatories to the treaty. The US ultimately acquired land and set up other reservations in Michigan for Chippewa based on this treaty, for instance for theBay Mills Indian Community.
Seven hundred and sixty acres (310 ha) of forestland was transferred fromThe Nature Conservancy to the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community in 2024. The land, located within the ’s 1842 reservation boundary, was purchased from a landowner in 2021.[6]
The reservation includes land on either side of theKeweenaw Bay inBaraga County, Michigan. The entire reservation encompasses nearly one third of the area of Baraga County. The largest section lies in northernL'Anse Township and westernArvon Township on the east side of Keweenaw Bay, while the smaller section lies in northernBaraga Township on the west side of Keweenaw Bay. There is also a much smaller (43.07acre) part of the reservation in northernChocolay Township in northeasternMarquette County.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the L'Anse reservation and off-reservation trust land have a combined total area of 110.06 square miles (285.1 km2), of which 91.98 square miles (58,870 acres; 238.2 km2) is land and 18.08 square miles (46.8 km2) is water. Of the total area, 0.14 square miles (90 acres; 0.36 km2) wasoff-reservation trust land.[2]
Due to historic allotment under theDawes Act of 1886, only about 36% of the land inside the reservation is owned by the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. The remaining 64% is owned by individuals (both Tribal members and non-members), businesses, and other local governments.[5]
As of thecensus of 2020,[3] the population of the L'Anse Reservation (including off-reservation trust land) was 3,396. Thepopulation density was 36.9 inhabitants per square mile (14.2/km2). There were 1,844 housing units at an average density of 20.0 per square mile (7.7/km2). The racial makeup of the reservation and off-reservation trust land was 58.6%White, 29.3%Native American, 0.1%Black orAfrican American, 0.6% fromother races, and 11.3% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 1.1%Hispanic orLatino of any race.
The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community re-established its tribal government under theIndian Reorganization Act of 1934, with its constitution for elected government adopted in 1936. It elects members to a tribal council and executive.
The Act, which encouraged tribes to reorganize their self-governments, also required that the Ontonagon and L'Anse bands of theLake Superior Band of Chippewa Indians be brought together as the federally recognizedKeweenaw Bay Indian Community, defining it as the successor apparent of these two historic bands.[4] Each had reservations in Michigan established through 19th-century treaties with the federal government.
The Keweenaw Bay Community was among the four founding tribes of theInter-Tribal Council of Michigan, Inc. established in 1966 during a period of rising Indian activism in the United States and Canada. Others were theBay Mills Indian Community,Hannahville Indian Community, andSaginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe; all were federally recognized at the time. They worked to pool resources, preserve communal land, improve the welfare of their peoples, and improve relations with state and federal governments. Working as a group, the tribes qualified forCommunity Action Program grants that helped fund improvements in living conditions for their peoples. The council now represents 11 of the 12 federally recognized tribes in Michigan.
The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community establishes its own membership rules for the tribe.
The Keweenaw Indian Community operates a fish hatchery at Pequamining Bay on Lake Superior. It works to improve and preserve water quality in the lake to support fish and other natural populations.
The tribe also operates two casinos, the Ojibwa I on reservation land in Baraga County, and the Ojibwa II in a residential neighborhood in Chocolay Township,Marquette County. A 2000 land claims settlement with the state required the tribe to relocate the latter casino. The tribe proposed moving it to the defunctMarquette County Airport. As of December 2012 the location remained unsettled.[7]
46°46′52″N88°24′08″W / 46.78111°N 88.40222°W /46.78111; -88.40222
 Native American tribes in Michigan | |
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| Federally recognized | |
| State recognized |
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Municipalities and communities ofBaraga County, Michigan,United States | ||
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| Villages |  | |
| Civil townships | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Other communities | ||
| Indian reservations | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
Municipalities and communities ofMarquette County, Michigan,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| Charter townships | ||
| Civil townships | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Other communities | ||
| Indian reservations | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |
| International | |
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| National | |
