Kitch-iti-ki-pi
Native Treaties, Chris-Craft, natural healing waters, and the invasive mussel species all tell unique parts of the Kitch-iti-ki-pi creation story.
The spring itself—the largest natural freshwater spring in Michigan—is 45 ft deep and 200 ft across, filled with crystal clear water that is a chilling 45 degrees Fahrenheit year-round. There are several purported Native American legends regarding Kitch-iti-kipi. One Menominee and Chippewa legend details that Kitch-iti-ki-pi is medicine water, or Mashkiq’kiu-e’pish, that gives life and health. The tale purports that the spring has magical healing and rejuvenating powers. Over the years, Natives have used Kitch-iti-kipi’s mineral-infused water in healing tonics and rituals.
According to a Detroit Free Press article from 1999, titled "A Spring With a Story to Tell," the Ojibwe legend says that the lake was named in honor of a young chieftain who died when his canoe overturned in an attempt to prove his love for a young woman. In 2020, a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Carole Lynn Hare, shared and published an authentic story that had been passed down by her great-great-great grandmother that told the myth of the Kitch-iti-kipi springs. The novel is entitled The Legend of Kitch-iti-kipi, which adds some finer details to the myth, correcting a popularized version of the myth by a dime store owner.
The Legend of Kitch-iti-kipi begins before European settlers arrived in the Upper Penninsula of Michigan, where a young Ojibwe warrior, Young Eagle, and a maiden, Little Fawn, have fallen in love. However, a jealous chief, Big Buck, tries to tear the couple apart due to his lustful nature. The results are disastrous, turning the story into a tragedy. The site then became clouded in a black fog, which threatens all those who visit it.
Many European visitors did not know of Kitch-iti-kipi because of its position deep in the woods near Indian Lake, outside of Manistique. In the 1920s, John Bellaire moved to Manistique and opened up a dime store there. He was able to find the springs, and arranged for the property to be sold to the State of Michigan for $10 through the Palms Book Land Company. The deed stipulated that it was to be used as a public park.
Eventually, the Civilian Conservation Corps constructed a wooden raft and dock to be used to float tourists out onto the lake.
Before Bellaire's death, circa the 1950s, he confessed to an Indian Lake State Park manager that he had made up some of the myths connected to Kitch-iti-kipi in order to attract vistors.
