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Northeast Wigwam: Mohegan, The Wolf
About the time of first contact with Europeans, the Mohegan and Pequot Tribes numbered more than 20,000 people located near the Pequot (Thames) River Valley in Connecticut. The Mohegans were originally a tribe within the Pequot Nation, but are most often confused with the Mahican Tribe of New York, a completely separate tribe that may have once also been a part of this original nation.
The Mohegans separated from the Pequots some time after 1633, but were reunited with the Pequots after the Pequot War in 1637 under the leadership of Mohegan Sachem Uncas. Chief Sachem Uncas was a major political figure in the affairs of the Mohegans in the 17th century as they avoided major casualties in King Philip's War which took a toll on other tribes in southern New England.
Today's Mohegan live in the traditional homeland of New London County (originally Pequot), Connecticut. One focal point for the tribe has been the Tantaquidgeon Museum opened by Gladys and Harold Tantaquidgeon in 1931. The Mohegans received state recognition in the 1970's and federal recognition in 1994. The current tribal enrollment is about 1,000.
--written by Harold and Deborah Champlain, Narragansett
Indigenous languages
