The Menominee people have lived in Wisconsin since people inhabited Wisconsin. The word Menominee means “WILD RICE PEOPLE” because wherever they traveled on their lands, there was wild rice. From their original lands that extended from upper Michigan to Kenosha and from the Mississippi River to Lake Michigan, more than 10 million acres of land they now have about 90,000 acres of forest lands known as Menominee County. They lost most of their lands in treaties with the United States government.

The Menominee people thrived on their forested and waterside lands--hunting, fishing and gathering. Besides gathering wild rice, they gardened corn, beans and squash. In the woods they harvested nuts and mushrooms and many of their medicines. They collected maple syrup in the spring. They migrated on their land according to the seasons.

The U.S. Government through the boarding schools tried to convert the Menominee to farmers. However, the Menominees were more interested in logging for their economic base. They started their lumber mill in 1871 and moved it to Neopit after a blowdown in early 1900’s. They use a distinctive stye of lumbering called “sustainable development” of the forest. They cut some trees, leaving others to flourish. The Menominee Nation is known worldwide for their forestry practices.

In the 1950’s the Menominee were seen as a prosperous tribe. In 1961, the US Government terminated their tribal status. Because of this, the tribe lost its identity as a tribal people and found themselves in a state of poverty. The reservation became Menominee County and the Menominee assets were in the hands of a private trust management company. To pay the taxes on their forest lands, this trust collaborated with outside interests to develop the area around seven lakes into Legend Lake and sell off lakeside property to people from the Milwaukee and Chicago areas.

The Restoration Act passed on December 22, 1973, returned the Menominee to their status as a sovereign Indian nation with the federal government obligated to honor all treaties, agreements and statutes. The Menominee Constitution and Bylaws were ratified on November 12, 1977. Today, the Menominee, a prosperous tribe before termination, are once again on their way to economic progress and self-sufficiency. The Tribe provides employment to its people along with services such as a clinic, police protection, elderly centers, transportation, a tribal college, public schools and a tribal school. Menominee culture is being reclaimed through language programs, drumming groups and pow wows.

To learn more about the Menominee Nation, see www.menominee-nsn.gov.