Mashantucket, Conn. (November 18, 2025) — The Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation proudly observes Native American Heritage Month, honoring the enduring history, culture, and contributions of the Pequot people and other Indigenous communities in the region.
The Pequot Tribe, a Native Algonquin people, has lived on these lands for thousands of years. Their ancestral territory once encompassed approximately 250 square miles along what is today Connecticut’s coastline. The Pequot predate both the State of Connecticut and the United States, and they are recognized as the first Indigenous people to survive a genocidal attack by European colonists, known as the Mystic Massacre during the Pequot War (1636-1638). Survivors endured enslavement, forced servitude, and systemic attempts to erase the Pequot name, including the 1638 Treaty of Hartford, which declared the Tribe “extinct” and prohibited the use of the Pequot name.
Despite these attempts to erase their identity, the Pequot people endured. In 1651, Tribal leadership successfully negotiated land allotments for survivors, marking the Pequot as the first Indigenous people on the continent to be assigned reservation lands, initially at Morgan’s Point, Noank, and later relocated to Mashantucket in 1666. Today, the Mashantucket Pequot Indian Reservation stands as the oldest continuously occupied reservation in the United States. The Tribe received federal recognition in 1983 through the Mashantucket Pequot Indian Claims Settlement Act.
“Native American Heritage Month is an opportunity to honor our Pequot relatives and their enduring legacy,” said Rodney Butler, Chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation. “It is also a time to share our culture, language, and traditions with our wider community, ensuring that the history of our people is remembered, respected, and passed on to future generations.”
Throughout November, the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation invites the public to learn about the Tribe’s rich heritage through programs, exhibitions, and cultural experiences. The Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center offers visitors an immersive journey into Pequot history, from pre-contact lifeways to contemporary Tribal achievements, and highlights the Tribe’s traditions, ceremonies, and stewardship of their ancestral lands.