Mohegan People.
The Mohegan people are a federally recognized tribe and sovereign tribal nation with a reservation on the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut. Mohegan means wolf. Mahican means the same, but these are two distinct Algonquian tribes with different locations and histories. It is all too common for the Mohegan of the Thames River in eastern Connecticut to be confused with the Mahican from the middle Hudson Valley in New York (about 100 miles away).
The Mohegan people consist of many originally independent tribes, including the Pequot and Montauk. They gradually became independent and served as allies of English colonists in the Pequot War of 1636, which broke the power of the formerly dominant Pequot tribe in the region. The Treaty of Hartford established English recognition of the tribe’s sovereignty in 1638, but during the colonial period, they lost lands, and the tribe struggled to maintain recognition of its identity.
The tribe reorganized in the late 20th Century and filed a federal land-claims suit to regain land Connecticut had illegally sold. As part of the settlement, the Mohegan Nation gained federal recognition, and the Mohegan Indian Reservation was established. They have since established gaming operations to generate revenue for the welfare and economic development of their tribe. The tribe currently has an enrollment of about 1,300 people.
©Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated September 2026.
Also See:
Native American Photo Galleries
Native Americans – First Owners of America
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