News Photo by Julie Riddle An early draft of a story of the origin of the name of a bay south of Alpena, later published in a book by Robert Haltiner, appears at the Alpena County Library last week.

ALPENA ― When a report about the forced renaming of an Alpena body of water made recent front page news, historian Don La Barre’s phone started ringing.

Late last year, the U.S. Department of the Interior declared offensive a word contained in 660-some place names, including that of the small bay within Thunder Bay, along U.S.-23 South south of Partridge Point.

The U.S. Board on Geographic Names will soon rename those locations on its maps and documents, whether local residents like it or not.

People who know La Barre works as head of special collections at the Alpena County Library have called, emailed, and even stopped him on the street since the story ran, asking for background on the bay’s name.

“A lot of people want us to tell them the story,” La Barre said, surrounded by a stack of history books and papers in the library’s Alpena History Room last week.

News Photo by Julie Riddle Books about Alpena’s history by David Oliver and Robert Haltiner rest on a table in the Alpena History Room at the Alpena County Library last week.

History doesn’t always always provide such straightforward answers, he tells them.

CHANGE: FEARS AND FLUIDITY

The bay’s name surprised La Barre when he moved to Alpena from California. As a historian working among tribal representatives on the West Coast, he knew many indigenous people view the banned word as an ethnic, racial, and sexist slur.

Also surprising was the flurry of phone calls to the library’s Special Collections department following the March 4 News story about the bay name change.

Some callers wanted help coming up with a name reflective of local Native American history to suggest to the Board on Geographic Names.

News Photo by Julie Riddle A map depicting Native American settlements in northern Michigan in the 1830s appears at the Alpena County Library last week.

Others, upset by the prospect of a forced change, feared Alpena would lose a connection to its history if the name changes, La Barre said.

Either way, said the librarian, the curiosity ignited by the impending change means residents are paying closer attention to the past – and that could lead to finding a better way to honor it in the future.

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A self-proclaimed history nerd with an archive at his disposal, La Barre can rattle off historical facts from memory but also knows where to turn to fact-check and learn more.

Most local Native American stories preserved in writing, at least among the library’s collection, share history from a white male perspective, not from the voice of the region’s first residents, he said.

News Photo by Julie Riddle One story of the origin of the name of a bay south of Alpena appears in a book by Robert Haltiner, held by librarian Don La Barre at the Alpena County Library last week.

Those who truly want to know about the past, whether to make sure it’s preserved or to challenge change, can form their own opinion by diving into the books and papers and original sources that preserve at least some of that history, La Barre said.

He reminds callers that names are fluid, and Alpena has survived many a name change for local landmarks.

For example, he said, during World War I, the city changed Bismarck Street to Liberty Street, reflecting national sentiment toward Germany.

While the bay now faces a name change, Alpena and the surrounding area retain multiple names that reflect the people who originally hunted and fished the land.

From the Sahgonahkato Fire Company ― Alpena’s first fire department, organized in 1871 and named for a Chippewa chief who lived on Partridge Point ― to Ossineke and Negwegon State Park, many place-and-thing names honor the region’s first residents.

News Photo by Julie Riddle As a library patron peruses the shelves of the Alpena History Room at the Alpena County Library, librarian Don La Barre last week discusses Native American history in the Alpena area. Before him lies a drawing of Shingabawossin, a Chippewa chief with ties to the Ossineke area.

Of course, those names, too, could change, La Barre said.

IMPORTANT CONVERSATIONS

Recent resident interest in the bay sparked clicks as well as phone calls.

An online poll on The News website asking residents’ opinion about the name change generated more responses than any poll since May.

More than 80% of respondents in the unscientific poll said that, if a name offends someone, it should be changed.

About 16% said those offended by the word are being too sensitive.

La Barre hopes the current interest – and the forced name change – sparks important conversations and leads to efforts to find better, respectful ways to present history, even that which is imperfect.

Without such moments of interest, native and other history connecting the area to wider stories of Michigan and the Great Lakes is in danger of being forgotten, La Barre said.

“There’s so much more rich history in this area,” he said, “It would be a really sad day if a lot of those things are lost.”

Julie Riddle can be reached at 989-358-5693 or jriddle@thealpenanews.com. Follow her on Twitter @jriddleX.

Residents may suggest new names for the bay south of Partridge Point in Alpena to the Derogatory Geographic Names Task Force through April 25.

* Visit regulations.gov. Enter DOI-2022-0001 in the search bar and click “Search.”

* Click “Comment” under Reconciliation of Derogatory Geographic Names.

* Share suggested names in the Comment box. Also include the following:

“Agency name: Geological Survey; Feature ID: 638662; Docket number: GX22EF00COM000.”

* Commenters may include explanations of their name suggestions and may attach photos or documents if desired.