| Regions with significant populations | |
|---|---|
| westernConnecticut, U.S. | |
| Languages | |
| Historically likely anEastern Algonquian language,[1] now English | |
| Religion | |
| Indigenous religion, Christianity | |
| Related ethnic groups | |
| Wappinger Confederacy includingPotatuck,Schaghticoke people |
ThePaugusset are anIndigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands in western Connecticut.[2] Paugusset is also the name of their principal settlement in the 17th and 18th centuries.[1]
HistorianEdward Manning Ruttenber wrote that they were a band of theWappinger people and a subject of theMattebesec.[1] EthnographerJohn Reed Swanton described them as thePaugusset sachemdon.[3] Asachem was a leader amongEastern Algonquian-speaking peoples.
Today, Paugusset people are members of theGolden Hill Paugussett Indian Nation.[4]
Historically, they lived along both banks of theHousatonic River near theNaugatuck River.[1]
Their primary town, Paugusset, was on the eastern bank of the Housatonic River and had 300 residents at its height.[1]
They had towns in present-dayMilford andDerby inNew Haven County[5] as well asFairfield andLitchfield counties.[2]
Besides the principle village of Paugusset, their other villages included Meshapock, Naugatuck, Pequonnock (Pauquaunuch), Pisquheege, Pomerag,Potatuck (Poodatook), Squantuck, Turkey Hill, Wepowaug, and Woronock.[1][6] The Paugusset andSchaghticoke both lived in Chusetown, a Native settlement in present-daySeymour, Connecticut.[7]
Paugusset translates to "where the narrows open out"[1] or "place where forks in a river join."[8]The name Paugusset is also commonly spelled Paugussett. Their name was recorded in numerous other ways, including Pagasett, Paugasset, Wepawaug, and Wopowage.[9]
AnthropologistFrederick Webb Hodge wrote that the Paugusset spoke anAlgonquian language.[1] The Connecticut State Department of Education states that they spoke anIroquoian language related toNatick.[2]
The Paugusset's first recorded contact with Europeans was in 1637, when the English fought a war with thePequot, who took refuge with Paugusset.[2] The English then attacked Paugusset villages.[2] After this war, the Paugusset lost 90 percent of their land, and the English enslaved 200 to 400 Paugusset people and sent them to the Caribbean.[2]
In 1659, the English granted the Paugusset 100 acres of land nearBridgeport, Connecticut.[2] In early historical times, their population was between 700 and 800 people. By 1660, they had sold most of their lands to English colonists.[1]
About 127 Paugusset settled in the village ofScaticook in 1762, while about 60 remained in their earlier homelands.[1]
The Paugusset retained very little of their land. Many moved further west in Connecticut, while others moved to nearby cities where they worked in factories.[2] By the mid-19th century, the tribe retained one acre of land inNichols, Connecticut.[2] William Sherman (Paugusset) lived on this parcel with his family, which went into a tribal trust when he died in 1886.[2]
Paugusset people organized as theGolden Hill Paugussett Indian Nation, which is astate-recognized tribe in Connecticut. Ethel Sherman Piper Baldwin (Paugusset) became chief in 1933.[2]Aurelius H. Piper Sr. (1916–2008) became chief in 1959 and fought to regain historical lands for the Golden Hill Paugussett. Through grants, the tribe purchased 106 acres inColchester, Connecticut, which the state put into trust.[2] Aurelius Henry Piper Jr. "Quiet Hawk" became active chief in 1991.[2]
The Golden Hill Paugussett Indian Nation petitioned forfederal recognition as aNative American tribe; however, their petition was denied in 2004.[4] The final determination found that the state-recognized tribe was formed from Golden Hill Paugussets and Turkey Hill Paugussets, who had not constituted a single, unified government through history.[4]