Mashantucket Pequot Museum And Research Center

About the Museum:

The Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center, a new state-of-the-art, tribally owned-and-operated complex, brings to life the story of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, and serves as a major resource on the history of the Tribe, the histories and cultures of other tribes, and the region's natural history.

Utilizing the latest in exhibit design and technology and based on years of discussion with Tribal members and scholarly research, the institution, with a total project cost of $193.4 million, presents multi-sensory dioramas and exhibits of eastern woodland and Mashantucket Pequot life. Films and videos, interactive programs, archival materials, ethnographic and archaeological collections, and commissioned works of art and traditional crafts by Native artisans are featured in the exhibits.

The 308,000-square-foot complex, whose research facility serves as a major resource for scholars and the general public on American and Canadian Native histories and cultures, is one of the most innovative and comprehensive centers of its kind in the United States.

Museum Collections:

The permanent collection emphasizes the eastern region of North America from the 16th to the 20th centuries, including toys, prayer books, cooking utensils, mats, blankets, and Southern New England baskets. Commissioned works of art and traditional crafts made by Native artisans are also in the collection. The collections will be featured in exhibits organized by the Museum and Research Center as part of an ongoing series of temporary presentations in the Mashantucket Gallery.