To understand what the proposed legislation means and what is driving the present conflict it is important to place today's issues in a historical perspective. When glacial ice began to retreat from the area, some 12,000 years ago, it revealed some of the oldest exposed rock on the face of the earth. Thousands of years later, when soil formed and plants could grow a landscape of thick forests, crystal clear lakes, meandering rivers and wetlands abundantly rich in fish and wildlife was formed. The greenstone rock remains as an ancient back-drop to a long history of conflict. The area's first residents had little impact on their environment.
Archeologists believe people have been in the area for about ten thousand years.
The first to arrive were probably following the retreat of the glacier, hunting the moose and the caribou for food. Two thousand years later the area was inhabited by those known as the Archaic People. Archeologists have discovered the stone tools they used to work with wood. In fact, they were probably the first to travel the lakes in dugout canoes. Evidence of copper originating in the area has been found as far south as Mexico.