Hannahville Indian Community
The Island Resort & Casino is wholly owned and operated by the Hannahville Indian Community. The Hannahville Indian Community is a federally-recognized Potawatomi Indian Tribe that resides in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.
History
In the early 1830’s Peter and Hannah Marksman, a Methodist missionary family founded the Hannahville Indian Mission. A small number of displaced Indians settled in Hannahville during the implementation of the Indian Removal Act of 1830 under the presidency of Andrew Jackson. The Relocation Act moved Indians east of the Mississippi River to lands west of the river. Many of these were descendants of the Potawatomi Nation and belonged to the Algonquin family language stock, the largest in North America. The Potawatomi means “Keepers of the Fire”.
The Potawatomi Indians are one of the three tribes making up the Three Fires Confederacy or as it is commonly referred to today as the Three Fires Society. The Three Fires Society consists of the Ojibway, the Ottawa and the Potawatomi tribes. The Ojibway are given the honor or keeping the “Original Teachings” alive and passing these teachings down through upcoming generations. The Ottawas are responsible for the “Provisions and Security” of all the tribes attending gatherings. Making sure that everyone has enough to eat and ensuring the attendees that their meeting place is secure from invasion and disruption is their major responsibility. The Potawatomi Indians are responsible for keeping the “Sacred Fire” alive, as it is the symbol of light and must be kept alive.
Milestones
November:Drift Spa Construction begins.
2018Sage Run Golf Course opens.
| 1830’s | The Potawatomi “relocation” to Kansas. Some escaped, forced to march and made their way up the western side of Lake Michigan, settling in areas along the way up into Canada. Those who settled in the Cedar River area are the original descendants of Hannahville’s families today. | |
| 1833 | Residing Potawatomis, led by the Methodist Missionaries Peter and Hannah Marksman, organize the Hannahville Indian Mission. | |
| 1913 | The Hannahville Indian Community becomes a federally recognized tribe. | |
| 1942 | The Hannahville Indian Community consists of an estimated 134 members on 3,400 acres of land. | |
| 1942-1965 | Marks years of adversity for the Hannahville Indian Community. Community members have little money and are without electricity, running water and basic transportation. | |
| 1966 | Electricity is installed within the Hannahville Indian Community. | |
| 1978 | Two track roads paved in Hannahville Indian Community. | |
| 1981 | The “original” Hannahville Bingo Hall opens after years of community using Bingo to raise money for their baseball team. Prior to this, Bingo was held at the baseball field and players played from their cars. | |
| 1985 | The Hannahville Casino opens across from the Tribal Administration Center. 1987 The Hannahville Casino is renamed Chip-in Casino. | |
| 1991 | The first expansion of the Chip-In Casino opens at the present site. | |
| 1993 | February: | The new Nah Tah Wahsh School opens. |
| August: | Tribal/State Gaming Compact is signed by all Michigan Tribes and Governor John Engler at Nah Tah Wahsh School. | |
| 1994 | The remodeled Tribal Administration Center opens. | |
| 1995 | The new Hannahville Bingo Hall open. | |
| 1997 | February: | Hannahville’s Medical Center opens. Current registered tribal members number 611 residing on 5,000 acres. About half of these members live on tribal lands. |
| 1998 | December: | The new casino opens to the public with the first headline act appears in the Island Showroom. |
| 1999 | January: | The Convention Center opens. |
| July: | The New Bingo Hall opens. | |
| 2000 | May: | Island Resort & Casino RV Park opens. |
| October: | Island Oasis Convenience Store opens. | |
| 2005 | June: | The wastewater treatment plant is completed. $45 million dollar casino expansion project begins. |
| 2006 | January: | The 50,000 group tour arrives since December 1998. |
| December: | The newly expanded showroom, gaming floor and Beachcomber Restaurant & Bar Opens. | |
| 2007 | April: | New 11 story Palm Tower opens. |
| June: | Club Four One opens | |
| 2008 | July: | Sweetgrass, 18-hole championship golf course opens. |
| 2011 | May: | $2 million Convention Center expansion and renovation project is completed. |
| June: | Sweetgrass Golf Club hosts its first annual professional championship. The Island Resort Championship marks the first time in six years that an Upper Peninsula course has hosted a professional championship. | |
| 2015 | June: | T.McC’s Sports Bar opens. |
| November: | Drift Spa Construction begins. | |
| 2016 | May: | Drift Spa opens. |
| 2018 | Sage Run Golf Course Opens | |
| 2019 | June: | Island Resort Championship at Sweetgrass serves as the Evian Championship Qualifier for the first time. |
| September: | The first Island Resort Intercollegiate at Sage Run takes place and brings NCAA Division 1 talent to the Upper Peninsula. | |
| 2020 | $30 million expansion begins | |
| September: | Sportsbook opens, becoming the first sports betting venue open in Upper Michigan and Wisconsin | |
| 2021 | $30 million expansion is completed. The expansion includes Horizons Steakhouse, Splash Island and over 100 new guest rooms and suites. | |
| December: | Sweetgrass Golf Course is named the 2021 Michigan Golf Course of the Year by the Michigan Golf Course Association | |
| 2022 | January: | Sweetgrass Golf Course is named the 2022 National Golf Course of the Year by National Golf Course Owners Association |
| February: | The Reef and Reef Pizza opens | |
| March: | Dedicated Sportsbook area opens on the gaming floor | |
| May: | New top-of-the-line outdoor sign is installed | |
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