Family outing, ca. 1922. Personal collection.
Long before European colonization and American rebellion created the state of Connecticut, diverse Indigenous communities called the land home. They worked its soil, traveled its reaches to trade, and established cultures rich in political, artistic, technological, spiritual, and environmental legacies that continue to evolve today. Despite war, enslavement, and prejudice, Native people have remained active agents in their own and state history. Notable figures include Robin Cassacinamon, a 17th-century Pequot sachem and diplomat, and Mohegan medicine woman Gladys Tantaquidgeon, an educator, activist, and, in 1931, co-founder of the first Native American-owned Indian museum in the US. The state-recognized sovereign nations in Connecticut are the Eastern Pequot, Golden Hill Paugussett, and Schaghticoke tribes with the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan having federal recognition as well.
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Living Rituals: Mohegan Wigwam Festival
The Wigwam festival is a modern version of the ancient Mohegan Thanksgiving for the Corn Harvest, or Green Corn Festival. …[more]
