Is the Big Lake Really Called 'Gitche Gumee?' Many people, thanks to Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's "Hiawatha" poem (1855), have heard of Gitche Gumee, the shining Big-Sea-Water. This spelling was learned, it is said, from Henry Schoolcraft, who worked with the Ojibwe people at the time Longfellow wrote the poem. Located in central North America, it is the northernmost and westernmost of the Great Lakes of North America, straddling the Canada-United States border with the Canadian province of Ontario to the north and east and the U.S. states of Minnesota to the west and Michigan and Wisconsin to the south. [13]
Gitche Gumee Eruption Photograph by Alison Gimpel Fine Art America
Did you know that Gitche Gumee is a legendary Ojibwe name for Lake Superior which means "Great Sea" in English? It has a surface area of 31,700 square miles, and an estimated depth of 1,333 feet making it the largest and the deepest of the Great Lakes. Lake Gitchegumee is a man-made lake in Buckley, Michigan, known for its scenic beauty and various recreational activities. Its name is derived from the Ojibwe language and translates to "shining Big-Sea-Water." Gitche Gumee's Ancient Meaning The term "Gitche Gumee" literally translates to "big, great sea" in the Ojibwa language. It is speculated that the term dates back to before the 19th century, when indigenous groups began documenting the area. These groups, including the Anishinaabe and Cree, are attributed to the first use of the term. Wreck Of The Edmund FitzgeraldMusic and lyrics ©1976 by Gordon LightfootThe legend lives on from the Chippewa on down of the big lake they called "Gitche Gum.
Why Is Lake Superior Called ‘Gitche Gumee?’ Lake Superior Magazine
The Chippewa people named Lake Superior "Gitche Gumee" or "Ojibwe Gichigami", "The Ojibwe's Great Sea". Lake Superior was an important part of the fur trading relationship between the Native people and the French fur traders. Lake Superior has been and will always be an important link in our Great Lakes Waterway. Song by Gordon Lightfoot. The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down. Of the big lake they called Gitche Gumee. The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead. When the skies of November turn gloomy. With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more. Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty. Publication and plot Minnehaha, a marble state created in 1868 by Edmonia Lewis, now on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The poem was published on November 10, 1855, by Ticknor and Fields and was an immediate success. In 1857, Longfellow calculated that it had sold 50,000 copies. Longfellow chose to set The Song of Hiawatha at the Pictured Rocks, one of the locations. Gitche Gumee, the Ojibwa (Native American) name for Lake Superior, has inspired all who have stood on her shore or paddled her waters. Running 120 miles from Big Bay to Grand Marais Michigan on Lake Superior's south shore, the Hiawatha Water Trail (HWT) follows a shoreline paddled by Native Americans, Voyageurs and early European explorers. Experience some of the most scenic paddling.
The Shores of Gitche Gumee Neil Weaver Photography
Book Direct For Lowest Price! Hampton Inn Marquette/Waterfront. from Gitche Gumee RV Park. from Gitche Gumee RV Park. Ramada by Wyndham Marquette. from Gitche Gumee RV Park. from Gitche Gumee RV Park. Staybridge Suites Marquette, an IHG Hotel. from Gitche Gumee RV Park. The first use of the phrase "the big lake they call Gitche Gumee" comes from t he 1976 song by Canadian songwriter Gordon Lightfoo t about the 1975 sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald. The opening line of the song includes those words. While Lightfoot's song lyrics use the past tense in the phrase, it's become present tense in its colloquial use.
"By the Shore of Gitche Gumee…" Home > Exhibits > "By the Shore of Gitche Gumee…" The exhibit featured twenty-one dramatic illustrations of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's epic poem, The Song of Hiawatha, created by artist Joseph Boggs Beale in the early 1900s. American National Insurance Company generously donated the collection of drawings in 2010. 1. Who named Lake Superior Gitche Gumee? The name Gitche Gumee was not coined by a specific individual, but rather by the Ojibwe people who inhabited the region around Lake Superior. 2. What does Gitche Gumee mean? In the Ojibwe language, Gitche Gumee means "Great Water."
By the Shores of "Gitche Gumee" YouTube
Of the big lake they called Gitche Gumee The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead When the skies of November turn gloomy" The cold, wet winds of a northern November ripped across the faces of the crew as they boarded the Edmund Fitzgerald. Loaded to the gills with enough iron-ore pellets to make nearly 27,000 cars, or a small skyscraper. Gitche Gumee is located in Tofte, Minnesota, which is just a short 10-minute drive to Lutsen. Whether you want to venture out or stay in and enjoy the breathtaking views of Lake Superior, Gitche Gumee has something for everyone! Superior Stay is "Your Stairway to Heaven" Browse Our Gallery
