Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center facts for kids
| Established | August 11, 1998 |
|---|---|
| Location | Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, Connecticut, United States |
The Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center is a special place in Mashantucket, Connecticut. It's a museum all about Native American culture. The museum is owned and run by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation.
Contents
About the Museum
The Mashantucket Pequot Museum opened on August 11, 1998. It is located near the tribe's Foxwoods Resort Casino. The building is very large, about 308,000 square feet. It cost a lot to build, around $193.4 million. Most of the money came from the casino's earnings.
This amazing place is not just a museum. It also has resources for people who want to study the history and cultures of Native Americans. You can learn about tribes from the United States and Canada here.
What You Can See
The museum has many interesting things to see. Its main collection includes items from Native American peoples in eastern North America. These items date from the 1500s all the way to the 1900s. You can also see art and traditional crafts made by modern Native Americans.
Interactive Exhibits
The museum has many interactive exhibits. These help you learn about the Mashantucket Pequot people. You can see how they lived from ancient times until today.
One of the most exciting parts is a huge walk-through village. It's a re-creation of a Pequot village from around the year 1550. This was just before Europeans first came to America. The village is 22,000 square feet!
Life-Size Dioramas
The village has 51 life-size figures of Pequot people. They are shown doing everyday activities. You can see them building wigwams, sharpening arrows, and weaving mats. A long picture of an oak-hickory forest surrounds the village. It makes you feel like you are really there.
Observation Tower
There is also a tall observation tower, about 185 feet high. From the top, you can see the Mashantucket Pequot reservation. You can also spot the casino and other parts of southeastern Connecticut.
About 250,000 people visit the museum every year. One reviewer from Connecticut Magazine said the museum was "rival[ing] anything in the nation." They also said the Pequot village and other displays were so good, they "almost put EPCOT to shame."
Building Design
The museum and research center are housed in a modern building. It is made of glass and steel. The famous architects Polshek and Partners from New York City designed it. They wanted the building to look like it was part of the natural landscape.
Special Features
The main entrance is a round building called the Gathering Space. It is the center of the whole complex. Some parts of the design are based on the old Pequot fort in Mystic, Connecticut. This fort was very important in the tribe's history.
The building has won many awards for its design and construction. These include:
- American Architecture Award, Chicago Athenaeum, 1998
- Best of 1998 Award, New York Construction News
- Merit Award, American Institute of Architects (AIA) New York state, 1999
- Merit Award, AIA New England Regional Design Awards Program, 1999
- Innovative Design and Excellence in Architecture with Steel Award, AIA and American Institute of Steel Construction, 1999
- Honor Award, AIA Connecticut, 2000
- AIA National Award for Architecture, 2000
- New York Association of Consulting Engineers Platinum Award for Excellence in Structural Design, 2000
- Merit Winner, Engineering Awards of Excellence, 2000
In 2006, the museum's green roof also won an award. This roof covers 65,000 square feet and helps the building be more eco-friendly.
