The majority of Sugarloaf Mound will soon be back in the hands of the Osage Nation, thanks to a recent land transfer from a homeowner.
It’s a part of a three-year effort by St. Louis arts group Counterpublic, the Osage Nation and landowner Joan Heckenberg, who has lived at the mound for 81 years and has agreed to the process.
Counterpublic Artistic and Executive Director James McAnally said he’s had conversations with Heckenberg over the past three years about the transfer process. He said she was always supportive of it.
“It’s what she wanted but it was also where she has lived for 80 years,” McAnally said. “So it was a kind of slow and intentional process in which we were patient with that and kind of wanted to hear from her of what felt like a supportive process, and she felt like this was the right time.”
Studies will have to be done to preserve the historic nature of the mound and return it to its historic form once Heckenberg vacates.
“Through collaborative partnerships and the good will of the previous owner, the Osage Nation comes another step closer to restoring this sacred site as it should be preserved,” Osage Nation Historic Preservation Office Director Andrea Hunter said in a statement.
The mound, which sits between the Mississippi River and Interstate 55, holds historical significance. St. Louis was once known as “Mound City” because of the various mounds built by Indigenous people between 800 and 1350 A.D. European settlers destroyed the mounds and displaced Indigenous people. Sugarloaf is the last remaining mound in the city.
Since 2009, the Osage Nation has worked to reclaim parts of the mound, regaining the summit that year. McAnally said there’s one more property on the land, a home owned by pharmaceutical fraternity Kappa Psi. Negotiations between the parties have been positive, and McAnally said they hope the entire mound will be in the hands of the Osage Nation by the end of the year.
Alderwoman Cara Spencer aims to pass a resolution with the support of Mayor Tishaura Jones that recognizes the Osage Nations and acknowledges the nation’s sovereignty.
McAnally said the goal is to create an Osage-led interpretive center at the mound.
“It really is returning ownership and kind of self-determination to the Osage, which is a really incredible step forward,” McAnally said.
