Mackinac Indian Agency (Michigan)

Indian Tribes Associated With This Agency
Primarily Chippewa, Ottawa, and Potawatomi.

History
The Mackinac (or Michilimackinac) Agency was established in 1815 and was located on Mackinac Island at the north end of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. In 1822, the Sault Ste. Marie Agency was established on the Upper Peninsula. In 1832, Sault Ste. Marie Agency was consolidated into the Mackinac Agency.

In 1835, the Crow Wing Subagency was established, in 1836, the LaPointe Subagency was established, and in 1837, the Sault Ste. Marie Subagency was established, all from former jurisdictions of the Mackinac Agency. The Saginaw Subagency was discontinued in 1846 and the Sault Ste. Marie Subagency was discontinued in 1852, essentially giving the Mackinac Agency sole responsibility for all of the Indians of Michigan. From 1853 to 1858, it even had some responsibility for the Chippewa living along the shores of Lake Superior in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

In 1858, two new agencies reduced the area covered by the Mackinac Agency -- the Chippewa Agency at Sandy Lake, Minnesota and the La Pointe or Chippewa of Lake Superior Agency.

In 1873, the Mackinac Agency moved from Detroit to Lansing, and in 1876, moved to Ypsilanti. This Mackinac Agency was abolished in 1889.

A later Mackinac Agency for the Chippewa of Lake Superior living on the L'Anse and Ontonagon Reservations in Michigan was established in 1899. It was consolidated with the Lac du Flambeau Agency, 1 July 1927.

Agents and Appointment Dates
Willima H. Puthuff December 29, 1815,  Geogre Boyd  August 13, 1818, Henry R. Schoolcraft   assigned to consolidate MacKinac and Sault Ste. Marie Agencies  April 18, 1832, Robert Stuart   April 17, 1841, William A. Richmond   Aprpil 14, 1845,  Charles B. Babcock  April 11, 1849,  William Sprague   June 30, 1851,   Henry Gilbert  April 23, 1853,  Andrew M. Fitch   July 1, 1857,  DeWitt C. Leach   March 25, 1861,  Richard M. Smith   April 9, 18665,  William H. Brockway   April 8, 1869,  Bvt. Maj. James W. Long  June 14, 1869,  Richard M. Smith  April 18, 1871, George J. Betts   October 31, 1871, and George Lee   April 25, 1876

Records
Some of the records of the Mackinac Agency are in the Great Lakes Regional Archives of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in Chicago.

Letters received by the Office of Indian Affairs from the Mackinac Agency, 1828-1880, have been microfilmed by the National Archives as part of their Microcopy Number M234, Rolls 402-415. Copies are available at the National Archives and at the Family History Library and its family history centers on their microfilm roll numbers 1661132 thru 1661145.

Reports of Inspection of the Field Jurisdictions of the Office of Indian Affairs, 1873-1900 have been microfilmed by the National Archives as part of Microcopy Number M1070. The reports for Mackinac Agency, 1873-1888, are on roll 24 of that Microcopy set. Copies are available at the National Archives, their Regional Archives, and at the Family History Library and its family history centers (their microfilm roll number 1617697).

Microfilm copies of ...Narrative and Statistical Reports... for the Mackinac Agency, 1910-1927, are included in National Archives Microcopy M1011, Roll 81, available in the National Archives system and in the collections of the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, beginning with their microfilm number 1724299.

Annual Indian Census Rolls were taken at the newer Mackinac Agency for 1902-1903, 1910, and 1915 thru 1927. These rolls have been microfilmed by the National Archives as part of their Microcopy Number M595, roll 253. Copies of these records are also available at the National Archives, their Regional Archives, and at the Family History Library and its family history centers (their microfilm roll number 579663). These census rolls are also available online at Ancestry.com's subscription web site.