Indian Bowl for Future Generations

Our Mission is to sustain, strengthen and share the culture and performing arts of the Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe community. The new Waaswaaganing Indian Bowl Living Arts & Culture Center is a cornerstone of this mission.

For 75 years, pow wows have been held on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation in Northern Wisconsin at a site overlooking Long Interlaken Lake. We celebrate our culture and traditions through dance and song, and we have welcomed visitors to join us in these celebrations. The pow wow grounds became known as “The Indian Bowl.”

In April 2012, the Tribe chartered a not-for-profit corporation called the Lac du Flambeau Cultural and Performing Arts Center, Inc. In November 2014, the Tribal Council officially changed the name to the Waaswaaganing Indian Bowl Living Arts & Culture Center.

In September 2014, the dilapidated facility was demolished, and a Ground Blessing Ceremony was held in November 2015.

Construction on the new Waaswaaganing Indian Bowl Living Arts & Culture Center began in July 2016.

We promote the Ojibwe seven teachings: honesty (gwayakendamowin), truth (debwewin), humility (agaasenimowin), love (zaagi’idiwin), wisdom (nibwaakaawin), courage (zoongide’ewin) and respect (manaatajigewin). The teachings have been passed down from generation to generation through stories and ceremonies.

Today, the oral traditions are shared by those who carry the knowledge of such things. We live so that life will be good for our children, and for seven generations of our descendants. The Indian Bowl will help ensure the preservation of our culture and traditions.

A young Ojibwe girl enjoys jingle-dress dancing. Some dresses include upwards of 200 jingles. In years past, the metal cones were often made from lids of snuff cans. (courtesy Dean Hall/Lakeland Times)

Board Member Remembers

“Boozhoo”

“My fondest memory as a young girl was when my Pa, Grandpa and Uncle Bud lined my siblings and I up in a row.

“They sang some good old time pow wow songs and taught us how to dance to the beat of the drum. Once we learned how to dance and when our outfits were made, we were allowed to perform down at the Indian Bowl. We performed for tourists from all over the world. The most memorable event was during the historic naming ceremony for President Dwight D. Eisenhower and his wife Mamie.”

“My last Indian Bowl dance was just before they had to tear it down in 2014. I can’t wait till the new Indian Bowl is rebuilt, and we can continue our pow wows and other dancing and singing events on our Reservation.”

Georgine Brown, Board Member

Board Continues Indian Bowl Tradition

The Board of the Waaswaaganing Indian Bowl Living Arts & Culture Center is comprised of 15 members.

Board Members include Lac du Flambeau Tribal Members and community members, making this a true community partnership.

The Board is dedicated to having a Center that serves Tribal Members, and welcomes visitors from around the world.

Board President Georgine Brown at a nighttime celebration in 1970. (Courtesy George W. Brown, Jr. Museum)

Gregg Guthrie at the Indian Bowl in 1957. Although the wigwam was the most common Ojibwe dwelling, the teepee was occasionally used for shelter. (Courtesy George W. Brown, Jr. Museum)

A Preserve America Community

In 2009, the Lac du Flambeau Chippewa Tribe was designated a Preserve America Community. Preserve America is a U.S. government program that encourages and supports community efforts to preserve and enjoy the country’s cultural and natural heritage.

The program recognizes and designates communities that protect and celebrate their heritage, use their historic assets for economic development and community revitalization, and encourage people to experience and appreciate local historic resources through education and heritage tourism programs.

Preserve America is a national initiative in cooperation with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation; the US Departments of Defense, Interior, Agriculture, Commerce, Housing and Urban Development, Transportation, and Education; the National Endowment for the Humanities; the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities; and the President’s Council on Environmental Quality.

Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa

The Lac du Flambeau Tribe has inhabited the Northwoods of Wisconsin since 1745, when Chief Kiishkemun (Sharpened Stone) led the Tribe to the area.

The Chief settled our Tribe where the Bear River begins, and along the western shoreline of Flambeau Lake.

The Tribe acquired the name Lac du Flambeau from its practice of harvesting fish at night by torchlight. The name Lac du Flambeau, or Lake of the Torches, refers to this practice and was given to the Band by the French traders and trappers who visited the area.

The art of fire hunting. Painting by Nick Hockings.

We call ourselves Waaswaaganing, which means Lake of Flames in Ojibwe.

The 1854 Treaty of La Pointe established a 100,000-acre reservation for the Lac du Flambeau Band. The Tribe was officially established on May 8, 1937, when Tribal Members ratified the Corporate Charter of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of the Lac du Flambeau Reservation of Wisconsin.

In the early 1900s, the area became a tourist destination, especially for families from Wisconsin and the Chicago area. Since 1951, the Indian Bowl pow wow celebrations has been one of the premier Wisconsin tourist attractions.

Patrick Day
President

Mildred (Tinker) Schuman
Vice President

Emerson Coy
Treasurer

Roberta Gast
Secretary

Georgine Brown
Board Member

Grant Callow
Board Member

Cynthia Lei-Nako
Board Member

Bagwajikwe Madosh
Board Member

Nancy Peterson
Board Member

Sue Robertson
Board Member

Norm Wetzel
Board Member