The Pequot, once a powerful tribe, controlled all of Connecticut east 
of the Connecticut River.  They numbered 2,500, and their name 
meant "Destroyer".  The Pequot War of 1637 diminished their 
influence significantly.  In 1655, the Pequot were resettled onto a 
strip of land near New Haven.  Although the tribe gradually 
scattered, those that remained were subjected to great numbers of 
white settlers.  The Pequot had few resources left by 1735, when 
they petitioned Governor Joseph Talcott for help.  None was 
forthcoming, and the Pequot numbers steadily diminished.  Although 
descendants remained by 1910 the number of full-blooded Pequot 
Indians was down to sixty-six.