The Attic in Lac du Flambeau may be on borrowed time

A large portion of the parking lot at Lac du Flambeau’s Presbyterian church was designated as off limits after follow-up testing for human remains by the tribal historic preservation department (THPD) of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians on Aug. 17.

The testing was conducted after a ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey completed this summer indicated “the potential existence of human remains,” according to a press release from the LdF tribe. 

“The preliminary GPR tests indicated there may be more than one grave beneath the paved parking lot area,” an update published in the tribe’s Aug. 25 newsletter stated. “The initial ground investigation consisted of three test sites that were examined based on the GPR survey results. One site produced a positive result of the presence for human remains.”

In an update published on Sept. 22, it was reported that  the Tribe is working with the church “to restore the final resting places of our ancestors to the respectful setting all people would expect for their loved ones.” 

The church has agreed to remove the building currently housing The Attic resale shop and to replace part of the Church parking lot “to create a grassy area more appropriate for our ancestors’ final resting places,” the tribe’s statement reads. “We would like to thank everyone who worked through this important process for their time, patience, and dedication to ensuring our loved ones who walked on receive the respect and dignity they deserve.”

Church response

On Sept. 25, The Lakeland Times received a press release issued by the governing body of the church of Lac du Flambeau, known as The Session of Lac du Flambeau Presbyterian Church. 

“The following information is provided by the Community Presbyterian Church of Lac du Flambeau,” the press release reads. “It is intended to respond to inquiries the Church has received concerning the recent announcement by the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians that it intends on Oct. 14 to demolish the Church’s resale shop known as ‘The Attic.’”

The narrative from The Session re-capped things from the church’s perspective, noting that the church was notified by the THPD in mid-June regarding the GPR scan of the church parking lot in front of The Attic “to determine if there were any graves of tribal members beneath it.”

“Church elders have stated that when The Attic was built in 2001, there were no graves known to be on the site,” the press release states. “As The Attic was being built, the Tribe had a representative on site to ensure that no graves in the adjacent cemetery were disturbed during the building process. For these reasons, the Church had no reason to believe there were any graves under The Attic building or the parking lot.”

Even so, “out of respect” for the tribe and its concerns, the church agreed to close the parking lot “to allow the GPR scanning to occur uninterrupted.”

The church was informed by the tribe on Aug. 11 that the company it hired to do the GPR scans found some “anomalies the suggested the possibility that there might be gravesites under some parts of the parking lot.”

Soil samples were taken on three areas of the parking lot by a company hired by the tribe and one of the locations, according to the tribe, produced a “positive result consistent with the presence of human remains.”

“As a result, on August 21, 2023 the Tribe notified the Church it would be demolishing The Attic on October 14, 2023,” the church’s press release said.

Church officials noted their congregation has been in the community “for over 100 years” and how since it was built in 2001, The Attic “has been an important part” of serving church members as well as the “entire Lac du Flambeau community.”

“The purpose of The Attic has always been to serve as a resale shop of donated clothing, home goods and furniture to raise funds to benefit the Lac du Flambeau community,” the church press release said. “Since 2001, The Attic has raised over $50,000, monies used to fund educational scholarships for promising students of the Tribe and for other programs benefiting the community and various charitable causes.”

According to the church press release, none of that money has been used for the operational expenses of the church itself.

“The loss of The Attic not only would be a loss for the Church but would be a loss for the entire Lac du Flambeau community,” the press release states.

As for “suggestions” made on social media platforms that the church has agreed to the demolition of The Attic, the church’s press release said “those suggestions are incorrect” and that the church has not taken a position on the matter “and will not do so until it has a chance to review” and has evaluated the results of the GPR scans as well as the soil testing. 

“As always, the Church is respectful of the tribe’s concerns and wants to cooperate fully in determining if the graves of any tribal members exist under the parking lot or The Attic,” the press release said. “To that end, the Church has asked the Tribe to provide it with written copies of the results of the GPR scans, the soil testing, and any other evidence the Tribe has which it believes show one or more graves of tribal members are under The Attic building or the parking lot.”

Once that information is provided, the church’s press release states, the church “will require a reasonable amount of time” to have the information independently reviewed and evaluated “before a final decision is made to demolish the building.”

The church’s press release concludes by noting that church leaders will “continue to work in good faith with the Tribe to ensure that its concerns are addressed and that any decisions concerning the fate of The Attic are made with full knowledge of all relevant and reliable facts.”

Brian Jopek may be reached via email at [email protected].