Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians

The Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians is a state recognized tribe of Ojibwe and Odawa Native Americans, based in the state Michigan. The tribe is headquartered in St. Ignace and has around 2,000 enrolled members.



History
The Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians are Anishinaabe people that migrated from somewhere in the Northeast to the Great Lakes area[1] now known as Michigan sometime around 1200 CE.[2] The Mackinac Bands consist of bands 11 through 17, and is one of the oldest and largest historical groups of Odawa, Ojibwa, and Potawatomi people in Michigan. The Mackinac Bands is a signatory tribe of the Treaty of Washington (1836) and Treaty of Washington (1855) with the United States of America. The tribe has been petitioning for federal recognition since 1998. As of 2013 the Mackinac Bands of Chippewa and Ottawa Indians are listed in the Michigan Tribal Directory as a State Historic Tribe,[3] and is therefore recognized as a State Historic Tribe by the State of Michigan.