Wisconsin Indian Lands Today

Click on each tribal name to learn more about our state's thriving Native American communities. Wisconsin has more reservations than any other state east of the Mississippi River.

The Bad River Band is one of six Ojibwe bands in Wisconsin. In the treaty of 1854, 125,000 acres on the shore of Lake Superior and 200 acres on Madeline Island were set aside as reservation land. 90 percent of this land remains wild. Today, the Bad River band has over 6,000 members.

The Red Cliff band of Chippewa (Ojibwe) resides on the northern shoreline of the Bayfield Peninsula on reservation land ceded by the treaty of 1854. Today, this reservation includes a tribal campground and casino.

The Lac du Flambeau band of Ojibwe resides in north central Wisconsin, stretching across Vilas and Iron counties. According to the tribe's history, the legendary Chief Keeshkemun led his band to this area in 1745 by the light of a flaming torch, thus named the Lake of the Torches, or Lac du Flambeau.

Lac Courte Oreilles (LCO) band of Ojibwe occupies 69,000 acres of woodland forests in northern Wisconsin. Nearly 6,000 tribal members live in 23 villages spread throughout the reservation. The LCO run a community college, health clinic, and casino.

St. Croix Ojibwe
St. Croix Ojibwe (Chippewa) Reservation in northwest Wisconsin spreads across 3,000 acres of forested land through 4 counties. The St. Croix band was overlooked in the treaty of 1854 and was forced to wait until 1934 before the US government ceded them land. Over 4,000 members live on the reservation.

The Sokaogon (Mole Lake) Band of Lake Superior Chippewa (Ojibwe) received federal recognition and reservation status in 1937. Sokaogon clans migrated to the region over 1000 years ago, settling amidst fertile wild rice beds. In 1806, the Sioux and Ojibwe clashed in the Battle of Mole Lake. More than 500 Native Americans from both tribes were killed in this conflict.

The Potawatomi arrived in Wisconsin in the mid-17th century from Canada and the western U.S. In the early 1800s, Potawatomi lands were stripped away by the U.S. government. In 1913, the Forest County Potawatomi bought back lands in northern WI. The current reservation contains approximately 12,000 acres.

The Stockbridge-Munsee are a blend of Mohican tribes from Massachusetts and Delaware who moved west, settling near Lake Winnebago. In 1856, they obtained their present treaty lands from neighboring Menominee Indians. Today, 1,500 tribal members live on the reservation and run a museum and cultural center, health clinic, and casino.

The Menominee Indian tribe of Wisconsin is believed to have occupied WI for over 5,000 years. At one time, they inhabited 9.5f million acres of land in Wisconsin and Michigan. As Europeans arrived, the Menominee lost most of the their land but remained in the state. The present Menominee Reservation was established in 1854, leaving the tribe with only 234,000 acres of land.

The Oneida were part of the New York Iroquois nation prior to the Revolutionary War. In 1822, the Oneida purchased land in a territory that would later become the state of Wisconsin. By the1900s, however, much of these lands were taken away by the U.S. government. Finally, in1937, the Oneida Nation was able to buy back 1,270 acres of land. Today, the Oneida supervise a tribal health center, police, fire and rescue services, the Oneida Nation Museum, and the Oneida Library.

When French explorer Jean Nicolet arrived in Green Bay in 1634, the Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) Nation greeted him peacefully. Still, during the 1800s, the Ho-chunk were driven from Wisconsin into Iowa, Minnesota, and finally to a reservation in South Dakota. Over time, the Ho-chunk returned to Wisconsin to reclaim their ancestral lands. However, no treaty lands had been reserved, so present Ho-Chunk lands are tribal lands they once owned but have had to repurchase. Today, 4,700 members of the Wisconsin Ho-Chunk Sovereign Nation hold title to 2,000 acres of tribal land.

The Indian Gaming Regulation Act of 1988 allowed Native American tribes to operate casinos in order to promote tribal self-sufficiency and economic development. With the funds raised from casinos such as Potawatomi Bingo and Casino in Milwaukee, tribes support health care services, education, daycare, youth and elderly programs, and affordable housing programs.

Adapted from Mapping Wisconsin History: Teacher’s Guide and Student Materials
by Wisconsin Cartographer's Guild and Bobbie Malone. Madison: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 2000.