The tribe says they are 'a body of mixed-blood Chippewa, Ottawa, and Pottawatomi' who trace their descent from the principal chief Match-e-be-nash-she-wish. As of 2009, the tribe's enrollment is open only to babies born to current tribal members. The tribal council voted on rules for enrollment or membership in the tribe.

Virginia Sprague-Vanderband (Bradley District).

Ben Brenner, Council Member (Salem District).

Phyllis Davis, Council Member (at-large District).

Nicole Overbeck, Treasurer (Bradley District).

Jeff Martin, Secretary (Salem District).

Jodie Palmer, Vice Chair (at-large District).

Bob Peters, Tribal Chairman (Bradley District).

The current (3/6/23) Tribal Council is as follows: It has a written constitution and elected democratic government, consisting of several tribal council members. The Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians were recognized as a sovereign nation by the United States' federal government in 1988. Original members of the Gun Lake Band were survivors of these three tribes who gathered together in community near Gun Lake, Michigan. They all spoke Algonquian languages, part of a large language family extending from the Atlantic Coast and around the Great Lakes, and had some cultural similarities. Others remained in rural areas of Michigan and Wisconsin.

Under pressure and encroachment by Europeans, there were substantial population losses among the tribes, and some of their people moved west into Minnesota. The tribes tended to be highly decentralized, with most people living in bands. They are headquartered in Bradley, Michigan.Īncestors of this mixed band belonged to the Ojibwe (Chippewa), Ottawa, and Pottawatomi peoples, who lived around the Great Lakes in what became Canada and the United States. They were formerly known as the Gun Lake Band of Grand River Ottawa Indians, the United Nation of Chippewa, Ottawa and Pottawatomi Indians of Michigan, Inc., and the Gun Lake Tribe or Gun Lake Band. The Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians of Michigan is a federally recognized tribe of Potawatomi people in Michigan named for a 19th-century Ojibwe chief. Traditional tribal religion, ChristianityĬouncil of Three Fires ( Odawa, Ojibwe, and other Potawatomi tribes) Federally recognized tribe in Michigan, United States Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians of Michigan Regions with significant populations

Tribe office gun lake casino