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ST. PAUL, Minnesota (AP) – Transportation crews are installing 12 road signs in northeast Minnesota that have significant historical significance.
The panels, in preparation for more than a decade, mark the boundaries of a treaty signed in 1854 by the federal government and three Ojibwa tribes – the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa and the Fond Band. from Lake Chippewa Upper Lake.
The Minnesota Department of Transportation installed the first sign on November 1 on Southbound Highway 61 just south of the Canadian border and near the entrance to Grand Portage State Park, public radio reported of Minnesota.
“This is something that was long overdue,†said Grand Portage president Robert Deschampe. “When people enter the 1854 treaty area, they will know where they are and hopefully learn about the treaties. “
The Grand Portage Tribe initially asked for signs recognizing treaty boundaries 11 years ago, said Levi Brown, MnDOT’s director of tribal affairs. The Bois Forte and Fond du Lac bands followed suit with their own formal requests.
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The Ojibwe bands of Bois Forte, Grand Portage, and Fond du Lac ceded 5.5 million acres of land in northeastern Minnesota to the US government in 1854.
In return, by treaty, the tribes received small cash payments and guaranteed the right to continue to hunt, fish, and gather in this ceded territory.
The additional 11 signs will be placed along other freeways, including Interstate 35 near Sturgeon Lake, over the coming weeks.
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