Anishnaabek Mackinac
Mackinac Island has a long history. Long before the Europeans came to this continent this area was occupied by the Anishnaabek. They are the people of the Three Fires Confederacy, the Odawa (Ottawa) the Ojibwa (Chippewa) and Bodowadomi (Pottawatomi) people. Oral history traces the Anishnaabek back to the Eastern Coast of Turtle Island where spiritual leaders told them that they should travel to the west until we found the food growing on the water. The people traveled until they found wild rice growing on the water.
They were traders and established trade routes as far east as the Atlantic Ocean, as far west as the Rocky Mountains, as far North as Northern Canada, and as far South as the Gulf of Mexico. They were a wealthy nation respected by all neighboring Nations. When the French arrived in the land they established trade with them and when the English came to the land they also sought the Anishnaabek out as trading partners.
A great war broke out between France and England on our lands and the right to trade with the Anishnaabek nation. Some of the people remained neutral in the war and some of the people sided with the French and fought against the Native Nations who sided with the English.The English won the war and the French moved north. The people continued to trade with the French to the north as well as the English.
A second war occurred on Anishnaabek lands when the Americans fought the English. When the war ended the Anishnaabek people found a new government interested in their lands. This new United States government brought a treaty to sign in 1836, and in 1837 the State of Michigan was established from lands ceded in this treaty. Two thirds of the land that is now the State of Michigan was ceded in that treaty. The people reserved lands for their own use and the use of the ceded lands. The people reserved their hunting, fishing, and gathering rights in this Treaty.
In 1855 the United States government brought another treaty to the Anishnaabek people and asked that the remaining third of what is now Michigan be ceded to the United States Government. When this treaty was signed a reserve was established that included most of Leelanau County and a large tract of land in Antrim County. Almost all of this land was illegally taken from the people and had to be re-purchased.
The two treaties with the Anishnaabek people were broken many times by the federal government. Services promised were not received and the people went without any federal or state assistance from a time period shortly after the treaty of 1855 until 1980 as the Bureau of Indian Affairs determined incorrectly that the Tribe had been terminated by signing the treaty. The Tribe applied for federal recognition under the Indian Reorganization Act under the leadership of Ben Peshaba in 1934. The Tribe was denied. The Tribe applied for federal recognition in 1943 under the leadership of Casper Ance. The Tribe was denied. The Tribe applied for federal recognition in 1978 under the leadership of Dodie Harris Chambers. On May 27, 1980 the Tribe was re-recognized by the federal government as the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. The Tribe drafted a Constitution and formed a government.
Under the Indian Reorganization Act The Tribe developed Tribal programs to serve the membership and in 1983 established an Economic Development Corporation and began to establish businesses for the Tribe. The Tribe has been very successful in business and today is able to provide many forms of assistance to the members of the Tribe.
*Sourced from http://www.gtbindians.org/history.asp
To learn a bit more about the Odawa check out http://www.ltbbodawa-nsn.gov/TribalHistory.html
The Native American Cultural History Trail circles the island. Along the way markers have been placed that provide a bit of information about the Anishnaabek. This wherigo follows that trail and stops at each of these markers. At each marker you will be asked a couple questions. Your answers will be collected and then later used to form the final geocache coordinates. Pay attention, because if you answer incorrectly you will not have correct coordinates for the geocache.
The Cyclops caching team and others have a plethora of caches around the island. I've written this cartridge so your game is saved often. Feel free to exit the game to find the other caches. The zones are all relatively large so make sure you restart the game well back from the markers. If you restart it and you are inside the zone the cartridge may not work.
This cache is a wherigo. All you need to play it is a smart phone or a wherigo compatible GPSr. The Garmin Colorado and Oregon series are compatible. For the smart phones you can download one of the players here:
For the iPhone - go to iTunes and search for the Wherigo player
For the Android Smartphone - visit the Market and search for "WhereYouGo"
Download the cartridge here
The wherigo site is having issues here is an alternate download site
Dropbox Link