Mackinaw City in Emmet County, Michigan — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Three Sisters
Photographed by Craig Doda, May 25, 2025
1. Three Sisters Marker
In traditional Indian culture, corn, beans, and squash are the "three sisters" that sustain life. They are planted close together as "companions." This planting method is 5,000 or more years old and is celebrated on the 2009 U.S. Sacagawea dollar.
Corn
Corn is planted first and its stalks support the twinning beans.
Beans
The bacteria that occur naturally in beans absorb nitrogen from the air and convert it to nitrates, which fertilize the soil for the corn and squash.
Squash
The large leaves of the squash provide ground cover between the corn and beans preventing weeds and retaining moisture in the soil.
Scarlet runner beans, like these shown, were grown by Native Americans.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Anthropology & Archaeology • Indigenous Peoples and Communities. A significant historical year for this entry is 3000 BCE.
Location. 45° 46.66′ N, 84° 46.346′ W. Marker is in Mackinaw City, Michigan, in Emmet County. It is at the intersection of Headlands Road and Wilderness Park Drive, on the right when traveling west on Headlands Road. Touch for map. Marker
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in Northern Michigan Lower Peninsula, on the Straits of Mackinac, and in one of the Lake Michigan Shore counties. It is also in the American Midwest and on the Great Lakes. Globally, it is in North America, the Great North Woods, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Viceroyalty of New France and also the Northwest Territory.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Kitchen Garden (here, next to this marker); Chasing a Dream (a few steps from this marker); Simple Two-Story Farm House 1882 (within shouting distance of this marker); 3-Seater (within shouting distance of this marker); Grebe Tool Shanty (within shouting distance of this marker); Mackinaw City's Schools (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Freedom School (about 300 feet away); Maple Ridge Farm (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Mackinaw
Photographed by Craig Doda, May 25, 2025
2. Three Sisters Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on June 2, 2025. It was originally submitted on May 30, 2025, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. This page has been viewed 74 times since then and 17 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 30, 2025, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
