ST. PAUL, Minn. – Transportation crews are installing 12 highway signs in northeastern Minnesota that have significant, historic meaning.
The signs, more than a decade in the making, mark the boundaries of a treaty signed in 1854 by the federal government and three Ojibwe tribes – the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, and Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. The Minnesota Department of Transportation installed the first sign on Nov. 1 on southbound Highway 61, just south of the Canadian border and near the entrance to Grand Portage State Park.
The Grand Portage tribe initially asked for signs recognizing the treaty boundaries 11 years ago, followed by requests from the Bois Forte and Fond du Lac bands.
Annuities being paid at the Fond Du Lac reservation, c.1865.
