| Total population |
|---|
| 1,292 enrolled members[1] |
| Regions with significant populations |
| United States (Long Island) |
| Languages |
|
English, formerly Algonquian, |
| Religion |
| Related ethnic groups |
|
Montaukett, Pequot, and Narragansett |
The Shinnecock Indian Nation is a federally recognized tribe,[2] headquartered in Suffolk County, New York,[1] on the south shore of Long Island. Shinnecock are an Algonquian people from Long Island. They now reside on the Shinnecock Reservation within the geographic boundaries of Southampton on the east end of Long Island.
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The Shinnecock were recognized by the United States government in June, 2010 after a 30-year court battle.[2][3] The Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Indian Affairs, George T. Skibine issued the final determination of the tribe's recognized status on June 13, 2010.[1]
The Shinnecock Indian Reservation is a self-governing reservation. By 1859, the current borders of 800 acres (3.2 km2) were established. Every Labor Day Weekend the reservation hosts a powwow. The reservation has a museum, shellfish hatchery, education center, community center, playground,[4] and Presbyterian church. The reservation is three miles (5 km) west of Southampton, New York. In 1903, it had a population of 150.[5]
The Shinnecock are believed to have spoken a dialect of Mohegan-Pequot-Montauk, similar to their neighbors the Montaukett on Long Island. Their western neighbors were Lenape people who most likely spoke an R-dialect of Munsee. The languages became extinct sometime in the mid-19th century, as numbers of native speakers were drastically reduced. A few words have survived to the modern day.
They were culturally affiliated with, as well as politically subject to, the Pequot and Narragansett, the more powerful tribes of southern New England across Long Island Sound.
Like the other Native peoples of Long Island, the Shinnecock make wampompeag (wampum), shell beads strung onto threads that were used as currency, record-keeping, and for aesthetic purposes. These shell beads have been found at inhabited sites as far west as the Rocky Mountains, showing their value in trade. Although other New England tribes produced wampompeag, the Indians of Long Island are reputed to have made the best. The tribe was subject to raids by the Pequot and other New England tribes to control this valuable trade commodity. The Europeans quickly learned the value of the Shinnecock wampompeag in trade with other tribes.
Indian populations declined due mostly to new infectious diseases carried by European colonists. In addition, their communities were disrupted by land encroachment by Dutch, and later English colonists. Many Shinnecock joined the Brothertown Indians in New York and lost their distrinct community identity. Others intermarried with local colonists.
In 1703, a leasehold was established for tribal members in Southampton. In 1792, the state of New York passed a law reorganized the Shinnecock Indian Tribe as a trusteeship. The law also established annual elections for three tribal trustees, which have continued from 1792 to the present. In fall of 2010 the Shinnecock gained a national reservation. For over two centuries, the trustees have managed the tribe's land and resources.[1]
At the start of the 20th century, the Shinnecock were described as "daring seamen," and "furnishin[ing] efficient recruits to the United States Life Saving Service."[6] In December 1876, ten Shinnecock men died while trying to save a ship stranded off East Hampton.[7] The tribe is famous in local lore for their heroic efforts. Through the 19th century, Shinnecock men were fishermen and sailors on whaling ships.[8]
In 2005 the nation filed a lawsuit against the state seeking the return of 3,500 acres (14 km²) in Southampton, New York, around the tribe’s reservation and billions of dollars in reparations. The disputed property includes the Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, which Native American representatives say is the location of tribe burial grounds.
The core of the lawsuit is over a 1703 deal between Southampton and the tribe for a 1,000-year lease. The suit charges that a group of powerful investors conspired to break the lease in 1859 by sending the state Legislature a fraudulent petition from a number of Shinnecock tribesmen. Although other tribal members immediately protested that the petition was a forgery, the Legislature approved the sale of 3,500 acres (14 km²) of former tribal land.
The tribe has proposed building casinos in the past, but none have been established yet.[9]