Moccasin Telegraph
Ancestors of today’s Ojibwe people lived in family clans. Before the advent of
telephones or mail service, the clans’ patriarchs designated people to carry
their news on birch bark scrolls to other Ojibwe families. This way of sharing
news became known as the “moccasin telegraph” (referring to the moccasins worn
at that time). Today Mille Lacs Band members share their stories about the
Ojibwe culture, history and traditions through a local newspaper column called the
“Moccasin Telegraph.” The success of this column, led to the creation of “Perspectives,”
which is a series of columns by the next generation of Band members.
In this series, Band members describe what it is like to be an American Indian today.
