Tracey Deer

The annual John Beargrease Sled Dog Marathon honors the legacy of Anishinabe man John Beargrease. His pivotal work developing the entire North Shore of Minnesota and the surrounding communities has maintained its foothold over the past century.

John Beargrease was born in Beaver Bay, Minnesota, 1858, the son of an Anishinabe Chief, Moquabimetem. The family lived in a traditional wigwam on the edge of the first settlement on Minnesota’s North Shore, Beaver Bay. The family survived through traditional Native hunting, fishing, and trapping practices.

In John’s early years, the primary means of travel from Duluth to Thunder Bay, Ontario, was a mere footpath. This path was initially used by Native Anishinabe and later adopted by European fur traders and fishing families.

Despite the region’s remoteness, it offered abundant wildlife and great promise. By the time John was in his twenties, the North Shore had become home to numerous small settlements of fishing families in the many coves of Lake Superior’s rocky shoreline.

Lake Superior’s North Shore was (and still is) subject to severe temperature changes, heavy rainfall, and violent storms. Travel in the area was extremely difficult despite the influx of settlers. This led to limited communication at a time when most other parts of the country were receiving regular mail delivery.

John and his brothers were avid hunters and trappers. They regularly traveled to the region along their well-established Lake Shore Trail trap line. Recognizing the opportunity, John and his brothers began delivering the mail by simply tossing a mailbag or two into existing packs.

For almost 20 years, between 1879 and 1899, John Beargrease and his brothers delivered the mail between Two Harbors and Grand Marais with limited equipment and loads weighing as much as 700 pounds. The trip was made once a week, an incredible feat for one man to accomplish, especially considering the constant altitude range along the shore.