A LIVING HISTORY

TheNorth Shore of Lake Superior is rich with scenic beauty and human history. Located within the traditional cultural homelands of the Lake Superior Ojibwe, the landscape balances the waters that surround us. Before gravel roads and paved highways, the people traveled by water. The design and use of Kevlar canoes today originate from the birchbark jiimaanan handbuilt by Ojibwe people, and the metal fishing boats that pull in fresh catches of herring are related to the wooden herring skiffs that early European settlers built to harvest Lake Superior fish from spring to fall. The lake trout, herring, coho salmon, steelhead, menominee and whitefish from the waters of Gichigaming (Lake Superior) have been nourishing families and visitors for centuries. It is just one of many North Shore resources that continue to sustain our way of life and contribute to the living culture of this region.

Early industry on the North Shore was in the fur trade, with operations centered at Grand Portage (Gichi Onigaming), referencing the “great carrying place,” an 8.5-mile portage that circumvents the tallest waterfall in Minnesota--High Falls and the upper Partridge Falls on the Pigeon River. This ancient travel route used by

Indigenous people for thousands of years allowed French Voyageurs access to the interior lakes and river systems known as the Border Route. From 1784 to 1803, the North West Company’s inland headquarters was located at Grand Portage, the largest fur trade depot in the heart of the continent. And every year in late summer, the Grand Portage Ojibwe host an annual Pow-Wow and Rendezvous to celebrate the significance of Gichi Onigaming and the resilience of the Grand Portage Anishinaabeg. The chain of lakes and rivers that straddle the U.S. and Canadian border, from Lake Superior inland to Saganaga Lake and beyond, continue to serve as travel routes for visitors to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and are enjoyed by cabin owners and visitors to the many outfitters, lodges and retreats on the Gunflint Trail. Gichi Bitobig is the Ojibwe name for Grand Marais, a town built at the intersection of two beautiful bays. A seasonal fishing village for hundreds of years, Addikonse (Little Caribou) was a pre-colonial leader who lived at Grand Marais in the mid-1800s. He was the last of the Ojibwe chiefs to sign the Treaty of 1854, which ceded approximately 5.5 million acres of Ojibwe homeland to the U.S. Government. By the mid-1800s, local industry shifted from the fur trade and into logging, land acquisition and mineral prospecting. For many years, the North Shore harbors served as export hubs for massive amounts of timber, with thousands of acres of old-growth White Pine sold to help build the cities of Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Duluth and Superior. Today, the forest continues to provide resources for area loggers and builders, while also being an endless source of inspiration for writers, photographers and other artists—from Plein Air painters and potters to jazz guitar virtuosos and puppeteers—the North Shore arts community has it all. In winter time, the slopes along the Superior Highlands provide downhill and cross country skiers and snowboarders with extraordinary views of Lake Superior, and snowmobile trails connect riders with the winter landscape from Lutsen to Grand Portage. Here on the North Shore, visitors can experience the small and friendly places that carry on the rich traditions of people who have lived on the North Shore for thousands of years—communities shaped by the waterways, rugged landscapes and unique beauty of the remote, boreal forests that surround us. From the Sugar Maple stands that flourish on the ridges of the Superior Highlands to the majestic White Pines that stand guard over rocky outcrops all along the ancient water routes, this is a place where stories and histories are alive with beauty, cultural diversity and the lure of what is around the next corner.