The island
Scugog Island, its water and its people
Checked
Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation make their home on Scugog Island. This page describes the community and its casino in the words the community uses for itself, and gives the Powwow date as the Township of Scugog states it.
In their own words
Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation speak of themselves as belonging to the wider Anishinaabeg people, the original people. The community speaks Anishinaabemowin. This guide uses that full name for the community.
Three historical treaties appear in the way the community tells its own story. The First Nation states that it signed the Gunshot Treaty of 1788, Treaty 20 of 1818 and the Williams Treaties of 1923. This page names them as the community does and adds nothing to that history.
The Township of Scugog, whose heritage centre is downtown Port Perry, has an official land acknowledgement. Those words recognize the traditional territories belonging to Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation. For guests arriving from the city for a day by the water, that is a fair place to start.
The Powwow in July
The Township of Scugog says the MSIFN Powwow is held every year on the third weekend of July. The letters MSIFN are short for Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation. This page does not give times, a location or a program for the weekend. Anyone planning a July day at the lake around it should confirm the details with the First Nation before setting out.
The casino, in the community's terms
In 1997, Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation opened the doors of the Great Blue Heron Charity Casino. It takes its name from the birds in whose migratory path it was built. The community says the casino began as its own vision, through an agreement with Casinos Austria International.
Since 2016 the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has managed and conducted the casino, and Great Canadian Entertainment operates it. The First Nation owns it but does not operate it. After that change, the First Nation says, it is no longer a charity casino, and the community remains a partner.
The community calls the casino the heart of economic activity in its community. In a March 2023 interview, Chief Kelly LaRocca called Great Blue Heron the First Nation's principal revenue source. That revenue funds services such as healthcare and education. For a day-tripper from Port Perry, it is one stop of the day, not the reason for it.