Wisconsin is changing 28 place names that slur Indigenous women. Here's where they are and what the new names might be.
GREEN BAY - U.S. Department of the Interior officials are working with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to change the names of 28 places in Wisconsin that have been deemed derogatory toward Indigenous women.
Most are bodies of water, such as rivers, lakes and creeks.
Most are in the northern and western portions of the state, but some are in northeast Wisconsin.
The term "sq--w" may have started as a mispronunciation of an Algonquin word for women but over time has taken a significantly more derogatory meaning.
The term was used to name some places in Wisconsin by white settlers, mostly in the 1800s.
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U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland recently signed a directive that declares “sq--w” a derogatory term against Indigenous women and implements a process for replacing the names of places with that term across the country.
Haaland is the first Indigenous woman to hold the Interior secretary position.
Kris Goodwill, tribal liaison for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, said, “The DNR is preparing for the second round of the federal process and gathering other geographic names in the state that are derogatory.”
Here are the 28 places in Wisconsin that will be getting new names — including their locations and proposed new names.
1. Little Sq--w Lake
Location: Oconto County, between Suring and Coleman
Proposed names: Marl Bay, Messenger Creek, Bagley Creek, McDonald Creek, Green Island
2. Sq--w Lake
Location: Oconto County, between Suring and Coleman
Proposed names: Messenger Creek, McDonald Creek, Marl Bay, Bagley Creek, Green Island
3. Sq--w Lake
Location: Outagamie County, between Appleton and Fremont
Proposed names: Rat River, Potters Creek, Black Otter Lake, Black Otter Creek, Wolf River
4. Sq--w Creek
Location: Menominee County, just north of Neopit
Proposed names: Neopit Millpond 108, Rainbow Falls, Peavey Falls, Punchout Springs, Red Springs
5. Sq--w Island
Location: Door County, near Little Sturgeon, west of Sturgeon Bay
Proposed names: Keyes Creek, Little Sturgeon Bay, Henderson Point, Lake Michigan, Rileys Point
6. Sq--w Creek
Location: Ashland County
Proposed names: Conley Lake, Gogebic Range, Long Lake, Meder Lake, Spillerberg Lake
7. Sq--w Point
Location: Bayfield County
Proposed names: Lake Superior, Saxine Creek, Mawikwe Bay, Siskiwit River, Siskiwit Bay
8. Sq--w Creek
Location: Bayfield County
Proposed names: Mawikwe Bay, Siskiwit Bay, Eagle Island Shoals, Roman Point, Apostle Islands
9. Sq--w Creek
Location: Forest County
Proposed names: Spider Creek Flowage, Bellis Spring, Metonga Lake, Knoke Spring, West Hill
10. Sq--w Creek
Location: Jackson County
Proposed names: Hawk Island, 0.94 Reservoir, Black River Flowage 1610, Ni-ho-kha-wa-ne-ey-ja, 1.18 Reservoir
11. Sq--w Mound
Location: Jackson County
Proposed names: Levis Creek, Trowe Drain, Trowe Marsh, Little Bear Flowage, Dickey Creek
12. Sq--w Mound Flowage
Location: Jackson County
Proposed names: Levis Creek, Trowe Drain, Trowe Marsh, Wildcat Flowage, Dickey Creek
13. Sq--w Creek
Location: Langlade County
Proposed names: Augustyn Springs, Saint Claire Rapids, Harper Springs, Dennison Swamp, Stevens Springs
14. Sq--w Lake
Location: Langlade County
Proposed names: East Branch Eau Claire River, Bogus Swamp, Clearwater Creek, Sucker Creek, West Branch Eau Claire River
15. Sq--w Creek
Location: Lincoln County
Proposed names: Hilts Lake, Fawn Lake, Whirlpool Rapids, Harrison Lake, Pine Lake
16. Sq--w Lake
Location: Lincoln County
Proposed names: Wisconsin River, Crescent Creek, North Branch Pine Creek, Noisy Creek, Whirlpool Rapids
17. Sq--w Creek
Location: Lincoln and Price counties
Proposed names: Spirit River Flowage, Pearson Hill, Timms Hill, Moyle Lake 35, Lake Mohawksin
18. Sq--w Creek
Location: Marathon and Wood counties
Proposed names: McMillan Marsh, Rangeline Flowage, Big Eau Pleine Reservoir, 1 Reservoir, North Smoky Hill Flowage
19. South Sq--w Creek
Location: Marathon and Wood counties
Proposed names: Rangeline Flowage, Big Eau Pleine Reservoir, North Smoky Hill Flowage, Ten Pool, Smoky Hill
20. Sq--w Creek
Location: Marinette County
Proposed names: Sixty Islands, Buck Hill, Round Island, Miscauno Island, Merryman Island
21. Sq--w Lake
Location: Marinette County
Proposed names: Handsaw Creek, High Falls Reservoir, Peshtigo River, Thunder River, Johnson Falls Flowage 647
22. Sq--w Creek
Location: Price County
Proposed names: Solberg Lake, Elk, Duroy, Long Lakes and Wilson Flowage, Sailor Creek Flowage, Mink Spring, Hogsback Springs
23. Lower Sq--w Creek Flowage
Location: Price County
Proposed names: Hoffman Creek, Nichols Lake, Hesher Creek, Gates Lake, Deer Creek
24. Sq--w Creek Flowage 6
Location: Price County
Proposed names: Nichols Lake, Gates Lake, Hoffman Creek, Hesher Creek, Sailor Creek
25. Sq--w Bay
Location: Sawyer County
Proposed names: Heron Creek, Lake Chetac, Indian Point, Pickerel Lake, Garbutt Island
26. Sq--w Lake
Location: St. Croix County
Proposed names: Apple River, Riverdale Flowage, Cedar Creek, Horse Creek, Levesque Spring
27. White Sq--w Lake
Location: Vilas County
Proposed names: Siphon Creek, Siphon Springs, Goodyear Springs, Little Tamarack Creek, Garland Creek
28. Sq--w Lake
Location: Waushara County
Proposed names: Chicago Point, Fox Tail Point, Fox Tail Bay, Lower White River Pond 83, White River
Frank Vaisvilas is a Report For America corps member based at the Green Bay Press-Gazette covering Native American issues in Wisconsin. He can be reached at 815-260-2262 or fvaisvilas@gannett.com, or on Twitter at @vaisvilas_frank. Please consider supporting journalism that informs our democracy with a tax-deductible gift to this reporting effort at GreenBayPressGazette.com/RFA.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Wisconsin changing 28 place names that slur Native American women
