Anemki Wajiw

Anemki Wajiw, also known as Mount McKay, is a site located on the lands of the Fort William First Nation.

As of November 2025, it was the location for the installation ceremony of Lakehead University President Dr. Gillian Siddall. It has also hosted Powwow celebrations.

The name appears in the Lakehead University Alumni Spotlight profiles of Michele Solomon and Keith Ailey.

In Anishinabek News

• May 2018: The play was performed on May 9, 2018, at St. Martin School in Thunder Bay. The production used a shadow box and frozen pictures to contrast settler colonial stories with the spiritual embodiment of the mountain. The project aimed to teach that Mount McKay is a sacred Anishinabe place that never required a new name.
• October 2018: Tanya Talaga noted that her 2018 lectures began in the shadow of this landmark.
• August 2019: This site is a sacred place where Anishinaabe people hold ceremonies. The mountain is cared for by Elders. Jim Brandeau argued that the name Mount McKay should be removed in favour of its traditional name. The site features infrastructure such as roads, boardwalks, and railings for visitors.
• September 2020: Deanne Hupfield filmed a children's instructional dance video at this location during a trip to Fort William First Nation. The site hosted an informal dance gathering involving Deanne Hupfield and a local drum group.
• October 2020: The lookout served as the location for the Learn How to Weave Cattails into Ceremonial Mats workshop. Participants gathered at this site to build frames and weave mats using local materials.
• October 2020: Jolene Banning documented her activities at a sugar bush located at this site. The location was the subject of a personal essay broadcast on The Current.
• October 2020: The lookout at the mountain was reopened after Fort William First Nation eased its initial COVID-19 lockdown measures.
• July 2021: The Thunder Mountain Singers travel across North America to bring awareness to this mountain and its community. The mountain is also the name carried by the Thunder Mountain Singers.
• September 2021: The site hosts outdoor yoga sessions known as Wellness Wednesdays Yoga on the Mountain for community citizens. Participants use the natural environment of the mountain to connect with the land during wellness activities.
• October 2021: A sunrise ceremony was held at this location on September 30, 2021. The site hosted the Fort William Fall Pow Wow in 2021.
• November 2021: Sean Vanderklis visited this site on his first day after moving to Thunder Bay.
• April 2022: The mountain is recognized as a significant sacred gathering site across northern Ontario and beyond. The militia used the mountain as a backstop for rifle practice while operating a nearby range until 1997.
• June 2022: The location is the focus of a CBC Thunder Bay column series by Jolene Banning. Activities such as tapping sugar maples at this location helped Jolene Banning connect with her ancestors.
• July 2022: The site served as the location for the 2022 National Indigenous Peoples Day pow wow. The location hosted a Sunrise Ceremony, a feast, and giveaways during the festivities.
• August 2022: Mountain keepers participated in a healing program on the mountain during the summer of 2022. Natural materials including goldenrod, speckled alder, and spring water were harvested from the site to create inks. Participants used templates of the mountain to create paintings reflecting their personal and family connections to the place.
• August 2022: The site served as the location for the fifth annual Unity Gathering in August 2022.
• September 2022: The site is the location of Loch Lomond, which was used as a source of water for local Water Walks ceremonies. It is used as a historical identity for staff working at the Anishinabe Encampment at Fort William Historical Park.
• November 2022: The Healing Place is situated on a property located near this mountain. Rita Fenton described the mountain as a blessing from the Creator.
• December 2022: The mountain served as the site for a climate change and health adaptation program in mid-August 2022. Natural materials including wild plants and water were gathered from the mountain to create inks for artwork. A large billboard featuring the message to listen to the mountain was installed facing the site on James Street.
• May 2023: Two carved wooden statues on the mountain were restored by Doug Little during the summer of 2022. The statues required repair because the centers of the figures had rotted out from the neck to the base.
• June 2023: The mountain is widely known by this name within the community, though its official colonial name is Mount McKay. Councillor Desiree Morriseau-Shields noted that the community did not have a say in the original naming of the mountain. Leadership expressed a desire to have the name officially recognized as part of language reclamation efforts.
• July 2023: The site hosted the 2023 National Indigenous Peoples Day pow wow. Michele Solomon described the location as a beautiful sacred mountain offered by Fort William First Nation for the community event.
• July 2023: The mountain is the location of Loch Lomond, which provides the water used in local healing ceremonies. Water from this site is carried by Sheila DeCorte and others to be added to rivers in Thunder Bay.
• August 2023: Youth participants visited this site to learn about its cultural significance from Sheila DeCorte.
• August 2023: A drum social was held at this location as part of the Eshki-niigijig Maawanjidiwaad 2023 Youth Gathering in August 2023.
• August 2023: The site hosted a drum social on August 12, 2023, as part of a regional youth gathering. Participants at the Eshki-niigijig Maawanjidiwaad 2023 Youth Gathering gathered here to perform traditional dances and drumming.
• August 2023: The mountain is maintained by a group of summer caretakers who perform maintenance and participate in cultural teachings. A topographic map of the mountain was used as a base for an art project involving manipulated instant photography in 2023. Cultural teachings held on the mountain include water teachings and instruction on harvesting medicines and natural materials.
• April 2024: The mountain features a ridge that creates specific weather conditions suitable for maple sap production. Community members tap approximately 100 maple trees on the mountain to produce traditional syrup. Historical equipment such as spigots and evidence of an old sugar shack have been found on the mountain.
• August 2024: The site was mentioned as a location where a pow wow started in the early 1970s alongside events at the grounds of Fort William Historical Park.
• November 2024: The site hosted a Remembrance Day service at its cenotaph on November 11, 2024. The cenotaph on the mountain was put there by veteran Frank Banning and his family.
• January 2025: The landmark is featured as part of the local landscape in the book.
• August 2025: This location is one of the destinations for cultural excursions offered by Niibing Tribal Tours.
• August 2025: The mountain is the location of Loch Lomond, the source of water for local ceremonies. It holds significance for the people of Fort William First Nation.
• November 2025: The site is the location of an annual Remembrance Day ceremony for Fort William First Nation veterans. A cenotaph is located there to honour those who served in various wars.
• June 2026: Security cameras were installed on the mountain as part of a broader surveillance program for Fort William First Nation. The location provides an elevated vantage point to overlook the community for safety purposes.
• July 2026: The site served as the location for the Fort William First Nation 2026 Summer Pow Wow held in July. Pipe Ceremonies were conducted at the mountain on both Saturday and Sunday mornings during the celebration.
• August 2026: The site hosted the Nokiiwin Tribal Council Annual Unity Gathering in August 2026. The location provided a space for traditional workshops, including birch bark basket making and language immersion tents.
• September 2026: Helen Pelletier has worked on traditional birch bark canoes at this location since 2016. The mountain serves as a site for creating etchings that represent the community.
• October 2026: Andrew Judge identified Thunder Bay as being situated on this Anishinabek land.
• October 2026: The site served as the location for the Fort William First Nation Fall Gathering on September 30, 2026.
• October 2026: Youth participants toured the mountain to learn about its traditional name, which translates to Thunder Mountain. Gail Bannon provided teachings about the mountain's history and the importance of using its original name.