Midwest Communications’ radio group in Duluth has called off its annual medallion hunt after a report that medallion seekers had disturbed an Indigenous burial ground.
The medallion hunt was held as part of Midwest’s annual Winterfest, with clues announced by Midwest’s seven Twin Ports radio stations and websites beginning Jan. 25. The three-inch medallion was placed somewhere on public land in Duluth, Superior, Hermantown, or Proctor.
A Feb. 10 clue narrowed the hunt to Superior. On Friday, Feb. 12, Superior Mayor Jim Paine said he had learned that medallion hunters had disturbed the Ojibwe burial ground on Wisconsin Point.
“While much of the damage and violation may have been unintentional, it is still unacceptable and must cease immediately. This is a sacred space and we have a duty to treat it as such,” Paine wrote on Facebook.
A short time later, Midwest stations said the contest was cancelled due to “disrespect being done to public property.”