OTTAWA COUNTY, MI - Four years ago, archaeologists working with the Michigan Department of Transportation launched a project that revealed indigenous peoples had once used land along the new M-231 bypass for harvesting wild rice and fishing for Lake Sturgeon.
With the help of six sovereign Native American nations, the scientists also identified pottery shards, or potsherds; chipped stone tools; animal bones and other artifacts mostly buried in hearths and fire, storage and refuse pits between 1000 and 1500 A.D.
The guidance provided by the Indians and excavation work by MDOT archaeological consultant, Commonwealth Cultural Resources Group, Inc. of Jackson, earned the participants a Governor's Award for Historic Preservation in Lansing Wednesday, May 6.
The ceremony, held at the Michigan State Capitol rotunda, was part of an annual effort initiated by the State Historic Preservation Office at The Michigan State Housing Development Authority in 2003 to honor notable preservations that highlight Michigan's unique history.
Michigan's preservation office receives a grant funding from the National Park Service to operate its program every year.
MDOT said on Thursday that before work crews could begin construction on M-231; the new, $200 million limited access route in Ottawa County often referred to as the "U.S. 31 bypass," the transportation agency had to excavate three National Register of Historic Places-eligible sites along the M-231 path.
Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 required the archaeological work, along with the participation of federally recognized Indian Tribes.
"We partnered with six sovereign nations because it's really their story that we're learning about in doing the excavations of (the) site," said James Robertson, a staff archaeologist at MDOT.
Robertson, who accepted the state award on Wednesday, was joined by the six participating Native American nations.
They included the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, Match-e-be-nash-she-wish (Gun Lake) Band of Pottawatomi Indians, the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, the Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan, the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians.
To execute the project, MDOT also worked with the Federal Highway Administration and the State Historic Preservation Office to develop a Tribal Involvement Plan.
That plan outlined procedures MDOT's consultant should use if the group discovered Native American ancestors and how to assist the nations rebury them.
MDOT said archeologists did not encounter remains during the excavations in 2011 and 2012.
In addition to identifying key actions the scientists should take, the plan allowed the Native Americans tribes to conduct spiritual blessings and ceremonial activities during fieldwork and to examine the artifacts at a laboratory and the State Historical Museum.
Lorraine Shananaquet, who represents the Michigan Anishinaabek Cultural Preservation & Repatriation Alliance, a collective that includes two state historic tribes and all federally recognized tribes in Michigan, said the Governor's Award was very personal to her because the project consulted with her people and allowed them to observe sacred objects.
"We know we had to take them out to make that bypass, but it was done with such respect," said Shananaquet, also a member of the Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians.
Robertson said MDOT reviews about 300 projects annually and uses maps, topography, vegetation patterns and historical records, among other techniques, to determine if road projects might impact historically significant sites.
"Our goal is to avoid impacting archaeological sites. In the rare cases when avoidance is not possible, we preserve the information about the site by doing excavations and then use it to better understand the lifestyles and cultures of the native people who lived there," Robertson said.
MDOT noted that it will continue working with the Native American groups to create educational materials about the archaeological data for Michigan students.
The materials will focus on culture, economy, tribal history, wild rice and Lake Sturgeon fish.
The fish, known for their lack of scales and bony skeletons, are important to Indian tribes, who have worked to restore the species to the state's rivers and streams for many years.
During the M-231 excavation, archeologists only found the small bony exterior plates of Lake Sturgeon known as scutes. Scientists believe the fish are scarce due to severe overfishing.
More than a dozen other groups on Wednesday received rewards for rehabilitation efforts.
The projects were related to Lloyd's Department Store in Menominee, the Bohm Theatre in Albion, the J. W. Knapp Company Building in Lansing and the David Whitney Building in Detroit.
MDOT spokesman John Richard said on Friday that the crews will finish M-231 in October. The state route, which has already been tied into the newly widened M-104 pathway, remains closed to motorists.
Richard said the route will include the state's seventh-largest bridge and will be the fourth bridge in Ottawa County to cross the Grand River. It spans from M-45/Lake Michigan Drive to the I-96 interchange in Ottawa County.
Check out MDOT's video about Wednesday's award ceremony here: