Chippewa at Sault Ste. Marie (1820)
In 1820 the Chippewa ceded sixteen square miles at the St. Marys River rapids; the United States promised a perpetual right to fish.
- Signed
- June 16, 1820
- Senate
- Ratified
- Land given up
- about 42,000 acres
What happened
What happened
On June 16, 1820, Lewis Cass, acting as the United States commissioner, met the Chippewa at the Sault de St. Marie in the Territory of Michigan. The treaty they signed was short, and it concerned land beside the St. Marys River, which runs along the boundary with British Upper Canada.
The Chippewa ceded a tract that began at the Big Rock in the river. It ran down the middle of the river to the Little Rapid, then back from the river far enough "so as to include sixteen square miles of land." In exchange, the Chippewa acknowledged receiving "a quantity of goods in full satisfaction." The treaty does not list the goods or give their value.
The treaty also contains a promise. The United States "will secure to the Indians a perpetual right of fishing at the falls of St. Mary's," along with a place of encampment on the ceded tract, near the fishing ground. That camp could not interfere with the defenses of any military work or with private rights.
The treaty took effect once the President and Senate ratified it, and the Statutes at Large record a proclamation on March 2, 1821. The treaty text does not say what happened to the fishing right afterward.
Summarized with AI assistance from 3 sources and checked against their words; not yet reviewed by historians or by the nations. Report an error
What the sources say, and how this was checked
Well supported by the sources below.
The United States will secure to the Indians a perpetual right of fishing at the falls of St. Mary's
Tribal Treaties Database (OSU)so as to include sixteen square miles of land
Statutes at Large, vol. 7 (GovInfo)Proclamation, Mar. 2, 1821
Tribal Treaties Database (OSU)
Research notes. The treaty names no price for the goods. The sources cited do not say whether the fishing right was honored over time.
What the treaty did to the land
About 42,000 acres given up. Each shape is a numbered area in the federal government’s 1899 record of land cessions.
ceded to the United Statesabout 42,000 acres
Land of the Chippewa in Michigan, ceded 1820 (area 112)
Ceded by the Chippewa to the United States in 1820, a 16-square-mile tract at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
What happened next
Everything the record holds about this land and this treaty, in order: what earlier agreements said, what this one did, and what the United States, the courts and the nations did afterwards.
Who is doing the work today
The nations connected to this treaty come first, then groups returning land and defending treaty rights. Support goes directly to them.
Who is doing the work
This history belongs to living nations. Start with them:
- Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians of the Bad River Reservation, Wisconsin
- Bay Mills Indian Community
- Chippewa Cree Indians of the Rocky Boy's Reservation, Montana
- Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Michigan
- Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin
- Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
- Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of Michigan
- Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana
Working with these nations
- Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) Nation government Ojibwe treaty rights in ceded territories, natural resource stewardship, manoomin, and a Land Conservancy program… Give on their site Website
- Honor the Earth Native-led Pipeline resistance, sovereignty, energy justice Give on their site Website
- White Earth Land Recovery Project (WELRP) Native-led Recover the original White Earth reservation land base Give on their site Website
- Native Land Conservancy (Massachusetts) Native-led Native-led land conservation Give on their site Website
Native legal and land defense, nationally
- Native American Rights Fund (NARF) Native-led Litigation and legal advocacy for tribal sovereignty, treaty rights, land and resources Give on their site Website
- NDN Collective (LANDBACK Campaign) Native-led LANDBACK campaign (launched 2020; Mount Rushmore closure and return of Black Hills public lands), Indigenous… Give on their site Website
- Indian Land Tenure Foundation (ILTF) Native-led Land recovery and control by tribes and individual Indian landowners Website
- Decolonizing Wealth Project (Indigenous Earth Fund; California Tribal Land Return) Native-led Reparative philanthropy Give on their site Website
Gifts go straight to each organization; this atlas takes nothing. Listing is not endorsement: how organizations are listed.
Sources
Sources
- treaties.okstate.edu/treaties/treaty-with-the-chippewa-1820-0187reference work
June 16, 1820. | 7 Stat., 206. / scan: 188 TREATY WITH THE OTTAWA AND CHIPPEWA, 1820.
Shapes are approximate and are not legal descriptions of land, title or jurisdiction.