Ojibwe women making maple sugar at Cass Lake

Ojibwe women making maple sugar at Cass Lake

Ojibwe women making maple sugar at Cass Lake on the Leech Lake Reservation of Ojibwe, ca. 1920.

Photograph of a Sap Strainer

Sap strainer

Sieve used to strain out impurities from maple syrup after it had been boiled down. Used no later than 1959. Forms part of the Jeannette O. and Harry D. Dyer Ojibwe Collection.

Image of wooden Maple sugaring skimming ladle

Maple sugaring skimming ladle

Ladle used as a maple sugaring skimmer by the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, 1900–1930.

Photograph of maple sugar container made of birchbark

Miniature makak with maple sugar

Miniature birchbark makak (storage container) filled with maple sugar, ca. late 1800s–early 1900s. Collected by Darwin S. Hall at the White Earth Reservation of Ojibwe.

Maple sugaring paddle

Maple sugaring paddle

Paddle used for working maple sugar by the Big Bear family (White Earth Band of Ojibwe) ca. 1800s.

Image of Birchbark sap bucket

Birchbark sap bucket

Sap bucket formed from a single piece of birchbark folded together at the ends and sewn with basswood strips to form an oval dish. It was used for gathering sugar maple sap to be refined into syrup or sugar. From the Bois Forte Reservation, Minnesota, circa 1880.

Image of metal sap spigot

Metal sap spigot

Metal spigot used to direct maple sap from a tree. Used by the Red Lake Band of Chippewa, 1920–1925.

Image of wooden sap spigots

Wooden sap spigots

Three wooden sap spigots made no later than 1961. Forms part of the Jeannette O. and Harry D. Ayer Ojibwe Collection.

Maple Sugaring and the Ojibwe

Ojibwe people have made maple sugar, a traditional dietary staple, for centuries. It is easily accessed in the woodlands of Minnesota and can be stored for months without spoiling. While the technology used in the process has changed over the years, Ojibwe people continue to harvest maple sugar in the present day.

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