Pequot Indians
By Krista Kennedy

    The Pequot indians were a very essential part of the beginning of the American Frontier.  The Pequot warriors were a fighting tribe.  Their name means "Destroyer".  They spoke the Algonquin language in the area known as the Eastern Woodlands.  The Pequots occupied the East Coast, mainly in Connecticut and Rhode Island.  They were once identified with the Mohegan people because of their close descent.

For a complete, yet quick overview of the Pequot's history from past to
present: Click Here.

    When looking back on the history of the Pequot indians, I found some obituaries of some very early settlers in this new frontier.  In one genealogy specifically, I found the descendants of John Bradley who was born in 1499.  In John's third generation, their child was killed by Pequot indians.  I don't know about you, but seeing it in a specific persons family instead of a history book made it very realistic to me.  I realized that many American settlers had relatives that were killed by Indians.  This was especially true of the Pequot's because of their location and aggressive acts.
    So, where did these Indians go?  Why aren't the Pequot  as widely known like other American tribes?  There were around 2,200 Pequots and they all didn't have a long time to write in history.  Yes, some of it had to do with the virus's that were brought over, but it was a lot less complicated than that.  I think it would be appropriate to compare it with how science says the origin of the earth was the, "Big Bang" and the end of the Pequot was the, "Massacre".
    There was a great Pequot War in 1637 at Mystic, CT that practically wiped out the Pequot tribe.  You can view a picture and summary of an account on what happened on the day of the 26th of May.  Many people consider it the "Thanksgiving Massacre".  Squanto may have been a Wampanoag (Pequot descent) having a peaceful harvest with the pilgrims in 1609,  but there was bloodshed going on just 28 years after.  There are many people who didn't know about this Indian raid.  There are some people who are saddened over the issue of Thanksgiving.  I also found some people who are fanatics about what went on in Connecticut during 1637.
    Of the few that survived, they did make a difference in our history.  In 1990, there was a census taken and there was 536 Pequot indians left living on a Pequot reservation that claimed to have Pequot ancestry.  There was also a great man by the name of, William Apess.  He was a Pequot born in 1798 who was the first American Indian protest writer.  He has many documents that were published for the sake of his people.  Since than in 1992, the Pequot opened their first casino in Ledyard, CT.  This has brought enormous wealth to the tribe as well as help out the economic state of Connecticut ondifferent occasions.  They have also established a Pequot Academy which allows their children to go to school and learn of their ancestry as well a good education.  The Globe Pequot Press in CT, was also adapted from the local tribe and is now among the top three for travel books in the U.S.  And what not a better place to travel, than to see a Native American Fort in New London.  The fort contains a Pequot fortified village located at Themes River entrance in New London.  This village was the one that was raided by the colonials in 1637.  Even though not all branches of Pequot are recognized by the BIA many still hold organizations to represent their ancestry.  One such organization is the MPTN (Mashantucket Pequot Tribe Nation).  Another one that is closer to us geographicaly are the Brothertown Indians of Wisconson.  They became a separate entity in 1774.  The Pequot's definitely did not die with their ancestors long ago.  There are people who are proud of their heritage and the freedom that has allowed them to share it with others.  They may have been destroyers, but the "new" tribe is letting us know that we did some destroying ourselves.