The Menominee ( / m ə ˈ n ɑː m ə ˌ n i / mə- NAH -mə- NEE ; Menominee : omǣqnomenēwak meaning "Menominee People" , also spelled Menomini, derived from the Ojibwe language word for "Wild Rice People"; known as Mamaceqtaw , "the people", in the Menominee language ) are a federally recognized tribe of Native Americans officially known as the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin . Their land base is the Menominee Indian Reservation in Wisconsin . Their historic territory originally included an estimated 10 million acres (40,000 km ) in present-day Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The tribe currently has about 8,700 members.
78-863: Ozaukee may refer to: Ozaukee County, Wisconsin , in the United States The Ozaukee Ice Center , a two-sheet ice arena located in Mequon, Wisconsin, in the United States The Ozaukee Interurban Trail , or Ozaukee-Sheboygan Interurban Trail, a rail trail in Ozaukee, Sheboygan, and Milwaukee counties, in Wisconsin in the United States USS ; Ozaukee (ID-3439) ,
156-465: A 2007 estimate ). Males had a median income of $ 50,044 versus $ 30,476 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 31,947. About 1.7% of families and 2.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 2.6% of those under age 18 and 4.1% of those age 65 or over. The Association of Religion Data Archives reported that as of 2010, the largest religious group in Ozaukee County
234-498: A United States Navy cargo ship in commission from 1918 to 1919 Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Ozaukee . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ozaukee&oldid=963831652 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
312-465: A harbor in Port Washington on Lake Michigan, though not in the lakeside communities of Mequon or Grafton due to high bluffs along the lakeshore. The Ozaukee County Interurban Trail is a multimodal trail for pedestrians and non-motorized vehicles. It runs through Grafton and connects to Sheboygan County and Brown Deer Trails via the old Milwaukee-Sheboygan Passenger Rail line. Public transit
390-592: A law which phased out the Menominee reservation, effectively terminating its tribal status on April 30, 1961. Commonly held tribal property was transferred to a corporation, Menominee Enterprises, Inc. (MEI). It had a complicated structure and two trusts, one of which, First Wisconsin Trust Company, was appointed by the BIA. First Wisconsin Trust Company always voted its shares as a block, and essentially could control
468-626: A missionary priest in Michigan, who in his 1878 dictionary wrote: Mishinimakinago; pl. -g. —This name is given to some strange Indians (according to the sayings of the Otchipwes [Ojibwe]), who are rowing through the woods, and who are sometimes heard shooting, but never seen. And from this word, the name of the village of Mackinac , or Michillimackinac , is derived. Maehkaenah is the Menominee word for turtle. In his The Indian Tribes of North America (1952), John Reed Swanton recorded under
546-466: A notable forestry resource and ably manages a timber program. In an 1870 assessment of their lands, which totaled roughly 235,000 acres (950 km ), they counted 1.3 billion standing board feet (3.1 million cubic metres ) of timber. As of 2002 that has increased to 1.7 billion board feet (4.0 million m ). In the intervening years, they have harvested more than 2.25 billion board feet (5.3 million m ). In 1994,
624-627: A small isolated wigwam . As part of this transition, youth meet individually with Elders for interpretation of their dreams, and to receive information about what adult responsibilities they will begin to take on following their rites of passage. Traditional Menominee diets include local foods such as Allium tricoccum (ramps, or wild garlic). Boiled, sliced potatoes of Sagittaria cuneata are traditionally strung together and dried for winter use. Uvularia grandiflora (bellwort) has historically been used to treat pain and swellings. Pseudognaphalium obtusifolium, ssp obtusifolium (rabbit tobacco)
702-529: A sovereign nation. At the time, the Klamath people in Oregon were the only other tribal group identified for termination. The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) believed the Menominee were sufficiently economically self-reliant on their timber industry to be successful independent of federal assistance and oversight. Before termination, they were one of the wealthiest American Indian tribes. In 1954, Congress passed
780-549: A territory of about 10 million acres (40,000 km ) in the period of European colonization. They are believed to have been well-settled in that territory for more than 1,000 years. By some accounts, they are descended from the Old Copper Culture people and other indigenous peoples who had been in this area for 10,000 years. Menominee oral history states that they have always been here and believe they are Kiash Matchitiwuk (kee ahsh mah che te wuck) which
858-459: A total area of 362.8 square miles (939.6 km ), of which 355.5 square miles (920.7 km ) is land and 7.3 square miles (18.9 km ) is water. The small non-reservation parts of the county are more densely populated than the reservation, with 1,223 (28.7%) of the county's 4,255 total population, as opposed to the reservation's 3,032 (71.3%) population in the 2020 census . The most populous communities are Legend Lake and Keshena. Since
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#1732772961505936-420: A tribal constitution in 1976, and elected a new tribal government, which took over from BIA officials in 1979. During the period of termination, when the Menominee individually were subject to state law, in 1963 three members of the tribe were charged with violating Wisconsin's hunting and fishing laws on what had formerly been their reservation land for more than 100 years. The tribal members were acquitted. When
1014-686: A written constitution establishing an elected government. The tribe took over tribal government and administration from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in 1979. The Menominee are part of the Algonquian language family of North America, made up of several tribes now located around the Great Lakes and many other tribes based along the Atlantic coast. They are one of the historical tribes of present-day upper Michigan and Wisconsin; they occupied
1092-501: A written constitution. It elects a tribal council and chairman. The Menominee developed the College of Menominee Nation in 1993 and it was accredited in 1998. It includes a Sustainable Development Institute. Its goal is education to promote their ethic for living in balance on the land. It is one of a number of tribal colleges and universities that have been developed since the early 1970s, and one of two in Wisconsin. The nation has
1170-470: Is "Ancient Ones". Their reservation is located 60 miles west of the site of their Creation, according to their tradition. They arose where the Menominee River enters Green Bay of Lake Michigan, where the city of Marinette, Wisconsin , has since developed. Their name for themselves is Mamaceqtaw , meaning "the people". The name "Menominee" is not their autonym . It was adopted by Europeans from
1248-422: Is also used medicinally. Taenidia integerrima (a member of the parsely family ) is taken as a root infusion for pulmonary troubles, and as chew, the steeped root, for 'bronchial affections'; it is also used as a companion herb in other remedies because of its pleasant smell. The inner bark of Abies balsamea is used as a seasoner for medicines, taking an infusion of the inner bark for chest pain and using
1326-529: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Ozaukee County, Wisconsin Ozaukee County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin . As of the 2020 census , the population was 91,503. Its county seat is Port Washington . Ozaukee County is included in the Milwaukee – Waukesha – West Allis , WI Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of
1404-574: Is the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee , with 28,644 adherents spread across eight parishes. Although the number of Catholics in the county is around the same as it was in 1990, the number of parishes has declined from twelve in 1990 to eight in 2010, because of the mergers of small, rural and local parishes into larger, multi-campus parishes, such as the St. John XXIII Congregation in Port Washington and Saukville, which formed from
1482-805: The Battle of Mackinac Island . During the ensuing decades, the Menominee were pressured by encroachment of new European-American settlers in the area. Settlers first arrived in Michigan, where lumbering on the Upper Peninsula and resource extraction attracted workers. By mid-century, encroachment by new settlers was increasing. In the 1820s, the Menominee were approached by representatives of the Christianized Stockbridge-Munsee Indians from New York to share or cede some of their land for their use. The Menominee gradually sold much of their lands in Michigan and Wisconsin to
1560-538: The Cedarburg Mill . Several months after the panic, the United States Congress implemented the draft, which was unpopular among German immigrants with bad memories of mandatory conscription in their homelands. On November 10, 1862, several hundred Port Washington residents marched on the courthouse, attacked the official in charge of implementing the draft, burned draft records, and vandalized
1638-806: The Fox and Kickapoo tribes. All four spoke Anishinaabe languages , part of the Algonquian family. The five principal Menominee clans are the Bear, the Eagle, the Wolf, the Crane, and the Moose. Each has traditional responsibilities within the tribe. With a patrilineal kinship system, traditional Menominee believe that children derive their social status from their fathers, and are born "into" their father's clan. Members of
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#17327729615051716-464: The Milwaukee, Lake Shore and Western Railway constructed its railway on the eastern edge of the county along Lake Michigan, also to connect Milwaukee and Northern Wisconsin. It reached fewer communities compared to the M&N line, only serving Port Washington. Regardless the railroads spurred development in Ozaukee County by providing efficient freight and passenger transportation. From 1908 to 1940,
1794-490: The Ojibwe people , another Algonquian tribe whom they encountered first as they moved west and who told them of the Menominee. The Ojibwe name for the tribe was manoominii , meaning " wild rice people", as they cultivated wild rice as one of their most important food staples . Historically, the Menominee were known to be a peaceful, friendly and welcoming nation, who had a reputation for getting along with other tribes. When
1872-605: The Oneota culture arose in southern Wisconsin between AD 800 and 900, the Menominee shared the forests and waters with them. The Menominee are a Northeastern Woodlands tribe. They were initially encountered by European explorers in Wisconsin in the mid-17th century during the colonial era, and had extended interaction with them during later periods in North America. During this period they lived in numerous villages which
1950-502: The "Wisconsin" section: "Menominee," a band named "Misi'nimäk Kimiko Wini'niwuk, 'Michilimackinac People,' near the old fort at Mackinac, Mich." Michillimackinac is also spelled as Mishinimakinago, Mǐshǐma‛kǐnung, Mi-shi-ne-macki naw-go, Missilimakinak, Teiodondoraghie. The Menominee are descendants of the Late Woodland Indians who inhabited the lands once occupied by Hopewell Indians , the earliest human inhabitants of
2028-475: The 1870 census. The earliest settlements formed around grist- and sawmills located on the county's waterways. Cedarburg , Grafton , Hamilton , Newburg , Saukville , and Thiensville all had mills by end of the 1840s. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, the county economy was primarily based on agriculture. The beginning of the American Civil War saw some chaos in Ozaukee County. The county
2106-562: The 2000 Census, Ozaukee County had the second-lowest poverty rate of any county in the United States, at 2.6%. In terms of per capita income, it is the 25th-wealthiest county in the country. "Ozaukee" comes from the Ojibwe name for the Sauk people. It probably means "people living at the mouth of a river." The Hilgen Spring Mound Site is one of the oldest-known sites of human habitation of Ozaukee County. Located near Cedar Creek in
2184-516: The Chinese. As the canoe approached the shore, Nicolet put on a silk Chinese ceremonial robe, stood up in the middle of the canoe and shot off two pistols. Pierre François Xavier de Charlevoix, a French Catholic clergyman, professor, historian, author and explorer, kept a detailed journal of his travels through Wisconsin and Louisiana. In 1721 he came upon the Menominee, whom he referred to as Malhomines ("peuples d'avoines" or Wild Oat Indians), which
2262-613: The City of Mequon. Today, it is the largest and most populous city in Ozaukee County. The Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary was established in 2021 in the waters of Lake Michigan, with its southern portion lying off roughly the northern half of Ozaukee County′s coastline. The national marine sanctuary is the site of a large number of historically significant shipwrecks . Ozaukee County covers 233 square miles of land, making it
2340-649: The French had adapted from an Ojibwe term: After we had advanced five or six leagues, we found ourselves abreast of a little island, which lies near the western side of the bay, and which concealed from our view, the mouth of a river, on which stands the village of the Malhomines Indians, called by our French "peuples d'avoines" or Wild Oat Indians, probably from their living chiefly on this sort of grain. The whole nation consists only of this village, and that too not very numerous. 'Tis really great pity, they being
2418-461: The French visited for fur trading . The anthropologist James Mooney in 1928 estimated that the tribe's number in 1650 was 3,000 persons. The early French explorers and traders referred to the people as "folles avoines" (wild oats), referring to the wild rice which they cultivated and gathered as one of their staple foods. The Menominee have traditionally subsisted on a wide variety of plants and animals, with wild rice and sturgeon being two of
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2496-523: The Lake Michigan region. As the Hopewell culture declined, circa A.D. 800, the Lake Michigan region eventually became home to Late Woodland Indians . Early fur traders, coureur-de-bois, and explorers from France encountered their descendants: the Menominee, Chippewa (Ojibwa), Ottawa , Potawatomi , Sauk , Fox , Winnebago , and Miami . It is believed that the French explorer Jean Nicolet
2574-552: The Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company (TMERL) provided electric interurban passenger and freight service from Sheboygan to Milwaukee with stops at Belgium, Port Washington, Grafton, Cedarburg, Thiensville, Mequon, and other villages as well as major road crossings within Ozaukee County. The interurban cars ran approximately once per hour and delivered Ozaukee County agricultural products, such as milk and meat, to Milwaukee grocers and butchers. In 1940,
2652-613: The Potawatomi who evaded forced removal gathered in northern Wisconsin, where they formed the Forest County Potawatomi Community . The first whites in the area were primarily New England land speculators, who began purchasing land from the government in 1835 at the price of $ 1.25 per acre. One of these land speculators was Wooster Harrison, who settled the land that would become Port Washington in 1835, which he originally named "Wisconsin City." At
2730-510: The U.S. government through seven treaties from 1821 to 1848, first ceding their lands in Michigan. The US government wanted to move them to the far west in the period when Wisconsin was organizing for statehood, to extinguish all Native American land claims. Chief Oshkosh went to look at the proposed site on the Crow River and rejected the offered land, saying their current land was better for hunting and game. The Menominee retained lands near
2808-473: The Wolf River in what became their current reservation. The tribe originated in the Wisconsin and are living in their traditional homelands. The Menominee Indian Reservation is located in northeastern Wisconsin. For the most part, it is conterminous with Menominee County and the town of Menominee , which were established after termination of the tribe in 1961 under contemporary federal policy whose goal
2886-427: The age of 18 living with them, 65.60% were married couples living together, 6.50% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.40% were non-families. 21.40% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.40% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.07. In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.60% under
2964-437: The age of 18, 6.80% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 25.90% from 45 to 64, and 12.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 97.30 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94 males. The median income for a household in the county was $ 62,745, and the median income for a family was $ 72,547 (these figures had risen to $ 73,197 and $ 88,231 respectively as of
3042-609: The claim finally in 1952, awarding the Menominee $ 8.5 million. The Menominee were among the Native Americans who participated as soldiers in World War II with other United States citizens. During the 1950s, federal Indian policy envisioned termination of the "special relationship" between the United States government and those tribes considered "ready for assimilation " to mainstream culture. The Menominee were identified for termination, which would end their status as
3120-470: The conversion: to provide their own services or contract for them as a county. Menominee County was the poorest and least populated Wisconsin county during this time, and termination adversely affected the region. Tribal crafts and produce alone could not sustain the community. As the tax base lacked industry, the Menominee could not fund basic services. MEI funds, which totaled $ 10 million in 1954, dwindled to $ 300,000 by 1964. Struggling to manage financially,
3198-408: The county (and its geographically equivalent town) are not considered as part of the reservation. These amount to 1.14% of the county's area, so the reservation is essentially 98.86% of the county's area. The largest of these pockets is in the western part of the community of Keshena, Wisconsin . According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the combined Menominee reservation and off-reservation trust land have
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3276-557: The county was 89.9% White , 2.5% Asian , 1.7% Black or African American , 0.3% Native American , 1.1% from other races , and 4.6% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 3.4% Hispanic or Latino of any race. As of the census of 2000, there were 82,317 people, 30,857 households, and 23,019 families residing in the county. The population density was 355 people per square mile (137 people/km ). There were 32,034 housing units at an average density of 138 units per square mile (53 units/km ). The racial makeup of
3354-475: The county was 96.72% White , 0.93% Black or African American , 0.20% Native American , 1.07% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 0.34% from other races , and 0.73% from two or more races. 1.30% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 47.2% were of German , 7.3% Irish and 6.7% Polish ancestry. 95.1% spoke English , 1.6% Spanish and 1.4% German as their first language. There were 30,857 households, out of which 36.00% had children under
3432-402: The county. The last day of service was June 28th 2024. As one of the suburban “WOW” counties surrounding Milwaukee , Ozaukee County is a Republican stronghold in U.S. presidential elections, having voted Republican in all elections (except one) since 1940. Lyndon B. Johnson was the last Democrat to carry the county in a presidential election, in 1964. Following similar suburban trends across
3510-539: The eastern part of the City of Cedarburg , the site consists of three conical burial mounds constructed by early Woodland period Mound Builders . In 1968, archaeologists from the Milwaukee Public Museum found human burials and artifacts, including stone altars, arrowheads, and pottery shards, during an excavation of one of the mounds. Radiocarbon samples from the excavation date the mounds' construction to approximately 480 BCE, making it one of
3588-423: The effect of the termination on Menominee hunting and fishing rights on their former reservation land. The U.S. Supreme Court determined that the tribe had not lost traditional hunting and fishing rights as a result of termination, as Congress had not clearly ended these in its legislation. The tribe regained federal recognition in 1973 by an act of Congress, re-establishing its reservation in 1975. It operates under
3666-525: The evangelical Christian and Missionary Alliance with two congregations, 794 non-denominational Christians with four congregations, and 695 adherents of Orthodox and Reconstructionist Judaism with three synagogues, as well as other congregations in the Baháʼí , Christian Scientist , evangelical Protestant , Greek Orthodox , Hindu , Jehovah's Witnesses , Latter-day Saints , mainline Protestant , and Unitarian Universalist traditions. Ozaukee County has
3744-559: The exact age of the Ozaukee County Birdstone remains uncertain, many birdstones date from a period ranging from 3000 BCE to 500 BCE. In the early 19th century, the Native Americans living in Ozaukee County included the Menominee , Potawatomi , and Sauk people . There were numerous Native American villages in the county along the Milwaukee River and its tributaries. The Menominee surrendered their claims to
3822-561: The federal level as Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs (1993–1997). In 1970 the activists formed a group called the Determination of Rights and Unity for Menominee Stockholders (DRUMS). They blocked the proposed sale of tribal land by MEI to non-Indian developers, and successfully gained control of the MEI board of directors. They also persuaded Congress to restore their status as a federally recognized sovereign tribe by legislation. At
3900-744: The finest and handsomest men in all Canada. They are even of a larger stature than the Potawatomi . I have been assured that they had the same original and nearly the same languages with the Noquets , and the Indians at the Falls. Initially neutral during the War of 1812 , the Menominee later became allied with the British and Canadians, whom they helped defeat American forces trying to recapture Fort Mackinac in
3978-402: The homes of Union supporters. The riot ended when eight detachments of Union troops from Milwaukee were deployed. In the 1870s the Milwaukee & Northern Railway was constructed to connect Milwaukee and northern Wisconsin including Green Bay, along its route it reached many communities in the center of the county including Thiensville, Cedarburg, Grafton and Saukville. Around the same time
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#17327729615054056-403: The interurban ceased servicing Sheboygan due to declining ridership. Port Washington became the line's new northern terminus before the Ozaukee County line ceased operation in 1948. Ozaukee County's communities experienced significant population growth during the suburbanization that followed World War II. Between 1940 and 1980, the population more than tripled, from 18,985 to 66,981. Although
4134-541: The interurban to Milwaukee declined service and finally ceased operation after the war, the construction of Interstate 43 in the mid-1960s allowed more residents to commute long distances to jobs and this encouraged residential home construction. Communities that experienced the most significant population growth, such as Cedarburg and Grafton, began to annex agricultural land for residential subdivisions and retail commercial development. The previously rural Town of Mequon became increasingly suburban and incorporated in 1957 as
4212-791: The land east of the Milwaukee River to the United States Federal Government in 1832 through the Treaty of Washington . The Potawatomi surrendered their claims to the land west of the river in 1833 through the 1833 Treaty of Chicago , which (after being ratified in 1835) required them to leave the area by 1838. While many Potawatomi people moved west of the Mississippi River to Kansas , some chose to remain in Wisconsin, and were known as "strolling Potawatomi" because they were migrant squatters . Eventually
4290-407: The late 20th century, the members of the reservation have operated a number of gambling facilities in these communities as a source of revenue. They speak English as well as their traditional Menominee language, one of the Algonquian languages . Current population of the tribe is about 8,700. The Menominee have traditionally practiced logging in a sustainable manner. In 1905, a tornado swept through
4368-405: The liquid balsam pressed from the trunk for colds and pulmonary troubles. The inner bark is used as a poultice for unspecified illnesses. Gum from plant blisters is also applied to sores. The tribe originally occupied a large territory of 10 million acres (40,000 km ) extending from Wisconsin to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Historic references include one by Father Frederic Baraga ,
4446-434: The management operations of MEI. At the request of the Menominee, the state organized the former reservation as a new county, so they could maintain some coherence. The tribe was expected to provide county government functions but it became a colony of the state. The change resulted in diminished standards of living for the members of the tribe; officials had to close the hospital and some schools in order to cover costs of
4524-706: The merger of three parishes and holds services in three church buildings. Other large religious groups in the county include 8,464 Missouri Synod Lutherans with seven congregations, 5,094 ELCA Lutherans with ten congregations, 2,702 Wisconsin Synod Lutherans with seven congregations, 1,795 adherents of the Presbyterian Church (USA) with one congregation, 1,558 adherents of the United Church of Christ with three congregations, 1,154 UMC Methodists with three congregations, 1,061 adherents of
4602-471: The most important. Wild rice has a special importance to the tribe as their staple grain, while the sturgeon has a mythological importance and is often referred to as the "father" of the Menominee. Feasts are still held annually at which each of these is served. Menominee customs are quite similar to those of the Chippewa (Ojibwa), another Algonquian people. Their language has a closer affinity to those of
4680-557: The nation, the county has grown more Democratic in recent years. In 2020, Joe Biden became the first Democrat to win over 40% of the vote since 1964. Biden also won the municipality of Cedarburg , the first time a Democrat has won a municipality in any of the WOW Counties since 1996. Progressive judge Janet Protasiewicz received nearly 48% of the vote in Ozaukee in the 2023 Wisconsin Supreme Court election . In 2024,
4758-613: The oldest mound groups in the state. In the mid-1800s, Increase A. Lapham identified a group of circular mounds in the Saukville area and found a stone ax. In his writing, Lapham did not speculate about the age of the artifact or the mounds. An additional artifact of the early Native American presence in the Saukville area is the Ozaukee County Birdstone , discovered by a six-year-old farm boy in 1891. While
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#17327729615054836-642: The reservation, downing a massive amount of timber. Because the Menominee-owned sawmills could not harvest all the downed timber before it decomposed, the United States Forest Service became involved in managing their forest. Despite the desire of the tribe and Senator Robert M. La Follette, Sr. for sustainable yield policy, the Forest Service conducted clear-cutting on reservation lands until 1926, cutting 70 percent of
4914-585: The salable timber. The Department of the Interior regained control of the territory, as it holds the reservation in trust for the Menominee. During the next dozen years, it reduced the cutting of salable timber to 30 percent, which allowed the forest to regenerate. In 1934, the Menominee filed suit in the United States Court of Claims against the Forest Service, saying that its policy had heavily damaged their resource. The court agreed and settled
4992-650: The same clan are considered relatives, so must choose marriage partners from outside their clan. Ethnologist James Mooney wrote an article on the Menominee which appeared in Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), incorrectly reporting that their descent and inheritance proceeds through the female line. Such a matrilineal kinship system is common among many other Native American peoples, including other Algonquian tribes. Traditional Menominee spiritual culture includes rites of passage for youth at puberty . Ceremonies involve fasting for multiple days and living in
5070-498: The same time, President Richard Nixon encouraged a federal policy to increase self-government among Indian tribes, in addition to increasing education opportunities and religious protection. He signed the bill for federal recognition of the Menominee Tribe of Wisconsin on December 22, 1973. The sovereign tribe started the work of reorganizing the reservation, which they re-established in 1975. Tribal members wrote and ratified
5148-692: The second smallest county in Wisconsin by land area after Pepin County . The county's jurisdiction also extends over 883 square miles of water, most of which is in Lake Michigan . Lion's Den Gorge Nature Preserve is a large bluffland and wetland county protected area on the shore of Lake Michigan. As of the census of 2020 , the population was 91,503. The population density was 392.7 people per square mile (151.6 people/km ). There were 39,086 housing units at an average density of 167.7 units per square mile (64.7 units/km ). The racial makeup of
5226-583: The southern. County residents failed to ratify the bill, and in 1853 the legislature instead bisected the county into eastern and western sections, creating Ozaukee County. Port Washington became the seat of the new county, and the Washington County seat moved to West Bend . In the 1840s, German , Irish , and Luxembourger immigrants began settling in the county. Germans were the largest ethnic group in and 19th century Ozaukee County, with seven in eight residents being of German descent according to
5304-503: The southwestern corner of this area to create a separate reservation for the Stockbridge and Lenape (Munsee) tribes, who had reached the area as refugees from New York state. The latter two tribes have the federally recognized joint Stockbridge-Munsee Community . After the tribe had regained federal recognition in 1973, it essentially restored the reservation to its historic boundaries in 1975. Many small pockets of territory within
5382-720: The state and federal courts brought the issue to the United States Supreme Court. In 1968 the Supreme Court held that the tribe retained its hunting and fishing rights under the treaties involved, and the rights were not lost after federal recognition was ended by the Menominee Termination Act, as Congress had not clearly removed those rights in its legislation. This has been a landmark case in Indian law, helping preserve Native American hunting and fishing rights. The tribe operates according to
5460-539: The state appealed the decision, the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that the Menominee tribe no longer had hunting and fishing rights due to the termination act of Congress in 1954. Due to the state court's ruling, the tribe sued the United States for compensation for the value of the hunting and fishing rights in the U.S. Court of Claims , in Menominee Tribe v. United States (1968). The Court ruled that tribal members still had hunting and fishing rights, and that Congress had not abrogated those rights. The opposite rulings by
5538-406: The time, the land was part of Washington County , and there were proposals that Port Washington become the county seat. However, Port Washington was far from the county's other early settlements, including Mequon , Grafton and Germantown . In 1850, the Wisconsin legislature bisected Washington County into northern and southern counties, with Port Washington as the northern seat and Cedarburg as
5616-450: The trend furthered when Kamala Harris won 43.93% of the vote in Ozaukee in the 2024 United States presidential election , the highest percentage won by a Democratic presidential nominee since 1964. 43°23′55″N 87°53′37″W / 43.398475°N 87.893572°W / 43.398475; -87.893572 [REDACTED] Media related to Ozaukee County, Wisconsin at Wikimedia Commons Menominee Federal recognition of
5694-614: The tribe was terminated in the 1960s under policy of the time which stressed assimilation. During that period, they brought what has become a landmark case in Indian law to the United States Supreme Court , in Menominee Tribe v. United States (1968), to protect their treaty hunting and fishing rights. The Wisconsin Supreme Court and the United States Court of Claims had drawn opposing conclusions about
5772-422: The white-dominated MEI proposed in 1967 to raise money by selling off former tribal lands to non-Native Americans, which resulted in a fierce backlash among the Menominee. It was a period of Indian activism, and community members began an organizing campaign to regain political sovereignty as the Menominee Tribe. Activists included Ada Deer , an organizer who would later become an advocate for Native Americans at
5850-509: Was assimilation. The tribe regained its federally recognized status and reservation in 1975. The reservation was created in a treaty with the United States signed on May 12, 1854, in which the Menominee relinquished all claims to the lands held by them under previous treaties, and were assigned 432 square miles (1,120 km ) on the Wolf River in present-day Wisconsin. An additional treaty, which they signed on February 11, 1856, carved out
5928-466: Was formerly provided by a commuter express bus (Route 143) to Milwaukee with stops in Port Washington, Saukville, Grafton, and Mequon. The bus operated Monday through Fridays excluding holidays, and was run jointly by Milwaukee and Ozaukee County. In 2024 the Ozaukee County board elected to discontinue the transit line to Milwaukee without replacement leaving Ozaukee County with no public transit connection to Milwaukee and no fixed route transit service within
6006-443: Was one of the areas affected by Wisconsin's "Great Indian Scare" of September 1862, in which some residents panicked because of unfounded rumors of a Native American uprising in the state. The panic was exacerbated by the fact that 30,000 Wisconsinites were away, serving in the war, so residents may have felt especially vulnerable. Some residents fled their homes for Milwaukee, while others holed up in makeshift fortresses, as happened at
6084-437: Was the first non-Native American to reach Lake Michigan in 1634 or 1638. In 1634, the Menominee and Ho-Chunk people (along with a band of Potawatomi who had recently moved into Wisconsin) witnessed the French explorer Jean Nicolet 's approach and landing. Red Banks, near the present-day city of Green Bay, Wisconsin , later developed in this area. Nicolet, looking for a Northwest Passage to China, hoped to find and impress
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