People have lived in the Leech Lake Area for over 10,000 years and artifacts have survived that tell us the story of their lives. Our Early Man is holding a tool made of siltstone, discovered by the Leech Lake Heritage Sites Program of the Leech . . . — — Map (db m237143) HM
Descendants of the early man in the Leech Lake Area consisted of contemporaries of the woolly mammoth. Artifacts of the huge ivory tusks have been found in their burial grounds around Leech Lake. A civilization of the native Americans known as the . . . — — Map (db m237144) HM
The first excursion train pulled into Walker on August 8, 1896 and the town was ready for the invasion of fishermen from all over the country. Pat McGarry had opened up his White Tent City, consisting of twelve white tents, which became the next . . . — — Map (db m235797) HM
Throughout our American History, Walker and the Leech Lake Area have provided men and women to serve in the military in every conflict our great country has endured. Since Walker was founded in 1896, many of its original citizens were veterans of . . . — — Map (db m235795) HM
Missionaries were among the first to arrive in the Leech Lake Area and their work had a lasting impact on those who had settled there. Although their primary purpose was to spread the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ, they also served as . . . — — Map (db m235755) HM
In the early 1900s before the automobile, tourists could book round-trip railroad passage from Minneapolis to Walker for just fifty cents! At its peak in the 1970s, there were over 200 Ma & Pa establishments serving the lake — mostly simply fish . . . — — Map (db m235794) HM
Everybody remembers their own teachers, but names like Cerkvenik, Olness, Olstlund and Wallin were special to our WHS Class of 1949 and their teachings have been preserved in our hearts and minds throughout our lives. In 1896 our predecessors . . . — — Map (db m235791) HM
Many physicians have served the medical needs of the Leech Lake Area, beginning with Maji Gabowi, a documented medicine man of the Ojibwe Tribe. When Henry Schoolcraft led his first expedition in search of the source of the Mississippi, Dr. Houghton . . . — — Map (db m235793) HM
The name Leech Lake Village was changed to Walker, Minnesota when a lumber baron from Ohio by the name of Thomas B. Walker came to the area in 1862 and began buying up all the timberland around the area. The Village of Walker was named after him and . . . — — Map (db m235798) HM
The fur-trade industry began in our country in the 1600s and lasted into the 1800s. Fur hats and accessories became a symbol of success in Europe and created the demand which drove the fur trade. The original fur traders in the Leech Lake Area were . . . — — Map (db m235799) HM
In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act, which gave an applicant free title to 160 acres of undeveloped federal land west of the Mississippi River. Twelve years later, on August 6, 1874, both Henry Stovall & George LeBorneau . . . — — Map (db m235756) HM
Today, the economy of Walker and The Leech Lake Area is dependent upon the visitations of the entire family. The small fish camps have given way to the large resorts that cater to a full schedule of events for all ages. Our little town has become . . . — — Map (db m235796) HM
On Leech Lake, Bugonaygeshig is celebrated as a symbol of resistance by both the Indian and white communities. He lived a long life, steadfast in his Indian ways and Bugonaygeshig School in Bena, MN is named in his honor. On September 15, 1898, he . . . — — Map (db m235754) HM
