Alta McQuatters says she is on a mission to learn about her Native ancestors who chose to live on the “beautiful West End” with all of its natural resources that sustained them. Her great grandpa was called “Tame Tom,” and he trapped with “Wild Bill” up the Cross River. McQuatters’ grandfather, Jim Gesick, taught the Nelson family how to hunt and gather to feed their guests at Lutsen Resort. He was still hunting, gathering, and trapping at age 80, she said, and 90 years later, the Gesick family is still hunting, gathering, and trapping in the Lutsen area. Pictured here are Jim Gesick (“Giizhig” in his native tongue) (right) and youngsters believed to be his son White Sky (left) and daughter Cold Star (middle). “Giizhig” is the Ojibwe (Anishinaabe) word for “sky.”
Alta McQuatters shared these stories at the Arrowhead Center for the Arts in March 2013. The event, which featured a panel of locals sharing tales of local history, was called “Stories you’ve never heard – and good ones to hear again!”
Leave a Reply