East Lake is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

in Spalding Township,

Aitkin County Aitkin County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 15,697. Its county seat is Aitkin. Part of the Mille Lacs Indian Reservation is in the county. The county was created in 1857 and organized ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, United States. State Highway 65 ( MN 65) and Aitkin County Road 13 (360th Street) are two of the main routes in the community. Auto Tour Road, 363rd Lane, is nearby. The Rice River and Wakefield Brook both flow through the community. Nearby places include

McGregor McGregor may refer to: People * McGregor (surname) * Clan MacGregor, a Scottish highland clan * McGregor W. Scott (born 1962), U.S. attorney Characters * Mr. McGregor, a fictional character from Peter Rabbit Places in Canada: * McGregor Lake ...

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...

, Lawler,

Tamarack ''Larix laricina'', commonly known as the tamarack, hackmatack, eastern larch, black larch, red larch, or American larch, is a species of larch native to Canada, from eastern Yukon and Inuvik, Northwest Territories east to Newfoundland, and als ...

, and Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge.

Geography

East Lake, located immediately east of Big Rice Lake, is located in section 20 of Spalding Township. The community had a post office from 1910 to 1953, operated by early settler Anthony Spicola. The community at one time was served by the Soo Line Railroad and had a railroad station and a sawmill. Today, the abandoned railroad grade has been converted into a recreational trail.

History

Ojibwe people The Ojibwe, Ojibwa, Chippewa, or Saulteaux are an Anishinaabe people in what is currently southern Canada, the northern Midwestern United States, and Northern Plains. According to the U.S. census, in the United States Ojibwe people are one of ...

s lived in the area for centuries. Under the 1855 Treaty of Washington (10 Stat. 1165), an Indian Reservation for the Rice Lake Band of Mississippi Chippewa was supposed to be established, but due to several lakes in the area all translated into English as "Rice Lake", the Rice Lake Indian Reservation was never platted. However, the Rice Lake Band claimed the intended "Rice Lake" was Big Rice Lake, located immediately west of the community. Because of the Big Rice Lake's prominent feature of having a groved island, the community is called in the

Ojibwe language Ojibwe , also known as Ojibwa , Ojibway, Otchipwe,R. R. Bishop Baraga, 1878''A Theoretical and Practical Grammar of the Otchipwe Language''/ref> Ojibwemowin, or Anishinaabemowin, is an indigenous language of North America of the Algonquian lan ...

''Minisinaakwaang'' (By the Groved Island). After the Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge was established and forced removal of the Ojibwe peoples off the Refuge, the scattered Ojibwe population in the immediate area consolidated about the village and its train station.

Community

Today, East Lake serves as the administrative center for the

Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe ( oj, Misi-zaaga'igani Anishinaabeg), also known as the Mille Lacs Band of Chippewa Indians, is a federally recognized American Indian tribe located in east-central Minnesota. The Band has 4,302 members as of 2012. ...

, District II. The community has an Assisted Living Unit, a Minnesota Charter School named Minisinaakwaang Leadership Academy, and the East Lake Convenience Store and Laundromat. ZIP code 55760 (McGregor) serves East Lake.

References

Unincorporated communities in Minnesota Unincorporated communities in Aitkin County, Minnesota {{AitkinCountyMN-geo-stub