Scatacook

Scatacook, or Schaghticoke, lies beside the Housatonic River amid the wooded hills of western Connecticut. Indigenous people from several communities came together here, including speakers of Quiripi, Mohegan-Pequot and other languages. Their homes and planting grounds occupied the river terraces beneath the mountain, while the surrounding woods furnished places for hunting and gathering.

In 1736 the community sought protection from settlers encroaching on its lands, and Connecticut's assembly reserved ground on the west side of the river. Moravian missionaries established a church and school at Schaghticoke in the 1740s. Despite the reservation, land passed out of Indigenous hands through sales and long leases, and tribal leaders repeatedly sought to defend what remained. In 1756 they petitioned for additional land, including ground on which to grow corn.