Originally a part of the homelands of the Oc̣eṭi Ṡakowiƞ (Dakota, Lakota, Nakoda, or Sioux), who were pushed westward by the Anishinaabe Migration from the east coast, this location became known as Bawating by the Anishinaabe (the Ojibwe or Chippewa), who arrived there before Europeans showed up in the mid-to-late 16th century.

Bawating, sometimes seen written as Baawiting or Bahweting, is an Ojibwe word meaning "The Gathering Place.

The tribe's revenues from its Kewadin Casinos has enabled it to establish health centers and invest in education for its members.

The Sault Tribe operates its own government, with regular elections for chairperson and council members.

The modern Sault Tribe is descended from Ojibwe ancestors who lived on Sugar Island in the St. Mary's River between the U.S. state of Michigan and the Canadian province of Ontario, and in the area.

The Sault Tribe gained federal recognition by the United States Commissioner of Indian Affairs on September 7, 1972.

As part of the process, the federal government took land in trust for the tribe by deed dated May 17, 1973, and approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs on March 7, 1974.

Several thousand Mackinac Band members continue to work to gain independent federal recognition.

In June 2010 the Michigan Gaming Control Board voted 4–0 at a special meeting to transfer ownership from the Sault Ste.

In 2011 the tribe said it was considering development of additional downstate casinos in Romulus and the state capital of Lansing.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette contended that the Lansing project violated the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act and the 1993 compact which the tribe had made with Gov.

[4] In September 2015 a judge dismissed the state's lawsuit seeking to block a casino in downtown Lansing.

"[13] The casino is proposed to be built next to the Lansing Center, blocks from the state capitol building.

[15] The tribe helped found the Joseph K. Lumsden Bahweting Anishnaabe Public School Academy in Sault Ste.

The school was renamed in 1998 to honor Lumsden, a late tribal leader who helped develop the tribe's first housing, education, and health programs.

[17] Other tribal endeavors include building the Chi Mukwa (Big Bear) Recreation Center in Sault Ste.

[18] The Tribe publishes a monthly newspaper, Win Awenen Nisitotung, which in Ojibwe means "he/she/or one, who well or fully understands.