Spirit of the Ojibwe: Images of Lac Courte Oreilles Elders

In the 1740s, a group of Ojibwe Indians left Madeline Island, in Lake Superior, and traveled south to Odaawaa Zaaga'igan, the place where they found the dead Ottawa. Like other tribes and bands in the area, these people, who became the Lac Courte Oreilles Band, had most of their land taken by legal chicanery and were relegated to a reservation. Many found work in the burgeoning lumber industry, but after the virgin forest was cut down, they fell upon hard times. And this was not all that they encountered. Facing the detrimental attitudes of the time, and with their children forced to attend off-reservation boarding schools, the Ojibwe were told that their elaborate culture was of no account and that their ancient language was worthless. Confronting this challenge, the thirty-two elders whose stories are told here, and many others, with courage and quiet determination, maintained their traditions and rebuilt their heritage.