In the production and methods of collecting the sap from Sugar Maples, there is no clear source of how this tradition came into being. It's thought that the boiling of the sap to produce a thick Maple Syrup was introduced by Europeans, since the Indigenous peoples of North America used different methods to refine the sap into syrup. A reference made by Col. James Smith in 1799 indicates that the Indigenous peoples of North America living around the area where he lived would collect the sap in large shallow wooden containers and let the top layer of the sap freeze over night. Since the dark sugary sap was heavier than water, the top layer of ice would mainly be frozen water and as such, removed. After several nights of freezing there would be a yield of dark syrup remaining.

There are many legends regarding Maple Syrup's origin in Indigenous North America culture. Each tribe probably has a different folklore regarding how the syrup was discovered. In one such tale a tribal chief is in the habit of sticking his tomahawk in a tree after the end of each day. After repeatedly planting his tomahawk in the same spot an opening was made in the tree. The chiefs daughter was preparing food one evening and needed water for the meal. On her way to the creek she noticed that there was container filled with water below the tree which her father used to place his tomahawk. Instead of walking all the way to the  creek she used this 'water' instead to do her cooking. Unbeknown to her the sap of the tree had run out of the gash that had been created and collected in a container at the base of the tree. After boiling the chief and his daughter discovered the sweet taste of the Maple Syrup and decided to investigate further. This and many stories like it are attributed to the discovery of Maple Syrup to certain Indigenous North American Tribes.