Kathio Site - Mille Lacs Kathio State Park, MN - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The word "Kathio" has a more dubious pedigree. Well-known explorer Daniel Greysolon, Sieur du Lhut collectively referred to the area as "Izatys," a name the Mdewekanton Dakota people gave themselves. Sieur du Lhut's poor handwriting caused a wrong translation of the word "Izatys." The "Iz" was transcribed as a K, and further error caused the name to be Kathio, a word that translates to nothing. "Kathio" became a name so attached to the area that the park bears that name today. The park is one of the most significant archeological sites in Minnesota, with 19 sites identified. The earliest site, dating from the "Archaic" period, shows evidence of copper tool manufacture associated with the "Old Copper Tradition." Hundreds of years before Europeans settled in the region, the Dakota people established permanent villages along the shores of Ogechie Lake, and the Rum River. These people came to be known as the Mdewakanton, which translated means "Water of the Great Spirit." Late in the Dakota period, Father Louis Hennepin, a Recollect priest and one of the earliest European explorers to visit Minnesota, traveled through this region. He lived with the Dakota for six months in 1680 on a point of land where the Rum River leaves the park on the southeastern boundary. The French explorer, Daniel Greysolon, Sieur duLuth (after whom the city of Duluth was named) is also known to have visited this region in 1679. The 18th century increasingly became a time of change. By then, many bands of Dakota had relocated on the prairies, and near the lakes and rivers of what is now southern Minnesota. At the same time, Ojibwe Indians were entering the region from the east. Ojibwe oral tradition, recorded by historian William Warren, tells of a massive, three-day "Battle of Kathio" in which the victorious Ojibwe forever drove the Dakota from the area. Archaeologists have not found evidence to support this, and suggest that although many small skirmishes may have occurred, Dakota migration was well under way when the Ojibwe entered the area. The Ojibwe brought their own rich cultural tradition with them from the east and settled along the shore of Mille Lacs. Ogechie Lake and other natural areas thus continued to supply the needs of yet another group of people, providing wild rice, fish, waterfowl, and other foods. The Ojibwe continue to live in the Mille Lacs region today. In the 1850s, loggers came to the area. Within 50 years, the vast forest of white and red pine had been cut and located down the Rum River, or across Mille Lacs Lake to sawmills. Much of the park's human and natural history is presented at the Visitor Center, and at naturalist programs throughout the year.

Street address: restricted Onamia, MN USA County / Borough / Parish: Mille Lacs Year listed: 1966 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Information Potential Periods of significance: 1000-2999 BC, 1000 AD-999 BC, 1499-1000 AD, 1749-1500 AD Historic function: Domestic Current function: Landscape Privately owned?: yes Season start / Season finish: From: 01/01/2007 To: 12/31/2007 Hours of operation: From: 6:00 AM To: 10:00 PM Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   08/16/2021 li1gray visited it 04/07/2017 wildernessmama visited it 08/01/2016 m&m O visited it 09/21/2014 jbuyense visited it 05/10/2010 lenron visited it 06/28/2008 FSU*Noles visited it 06/28/2008 meralgia visited it 10/20/2007 MNSearchers visited it

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