The Wabanaki Nations
Since time immemorial, the indigenous Wabanaki people have lived on the land that is now called Maine and Canada. Today, there are four federally recognized tribal nations in Maine: the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, the Mi’kmaq Nation, the Passamaquoddy Tribe, and the Penobscot Nation. Collectively, they are known as the Wabanaki, or “People of the First Light or Dawnland.”
The Wabanaki Confederacy’s support of the American colonists against the British during the Revolutionary War was critically important. In 2020, the Wabanaki Alliance was formed to educate people about the need to secure the sovereignty of the Wabanaki tribal nations in Maine.
The Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians
The Maliseets, also known as the Wolastoqiyik, meaning “People of the Beautiful River,” call the Meduxnekeag River home. Before contact with Europeans, the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians occupied much of what is now considered the eastern borderline of the U.S. and Canada in northern New England. The Jay Treaty of 1794 guaranteed the Maliseets the right to cross the border freely because their villages spanned both countries. The Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians received federal recognition in 1980 and has approximately 1,700 members.
Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians' WebsiteThe Mi'kmaq Nation
The name Mi’kmaq, possibly means “our kin-friends” or “people of the red earth.” Historic Mi’kmaq Territory consists of Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, the Gaspe of Quebec, and parts of Newfoundland and the State of Maine. After a long struggle, the Mi’kmaq Nation received federal recognition in 1991, and subsequently changed their name from the Aroostook Band of Micmac Indians. The majority of the approximately 1,500 members live in Aroostook County.
Mi’kmaq Nation's WebsiteThe Passamaquoddy Tribe
The name Passamaquoddy comes from pestomuhkatiyik meaning “people of the pollock-spearing place.” The Skutik or St. Croix River (previously known as the Passamaquoddy River) was set as the international boundary between the United States and Canada by the Jay Treaty of 1794, cutting through the middle of the Passamaquoddy Tribe’s homeland. The Passamaquoddy Tribe, which was federally recognized in 1976, has two reservations in Washington County. Motahkomikuk is located 50 miles inland at present day Indian Township. Approximately 1,400 Passamaquoddy members are enrolled at Motahkomikuk. Sipayik is located overlooking the ocean at Pleasant Point. An additional approximately 2,005 tribal members are enrolled at Sipayik. A third Passamaquoddy community, the St. Croix-Schoodic Band is headquartered at Qonaskamkuk in St. Andrews, New Brunswick.
Website of the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Sipayik (Pleasant Point)Website of the Passamaquoddy Tribe at Motahkomikuk (Indian Township)The Penobscot Nation
The name Penobscot comes from panawahpskek, “the place of the white rocks” or “where the rocks widen.” The Penobscot Nation’s ancestral homeland is situated within the drainage area of the Penobscot River and its many tributaries, lakes, and ponds. The Nation’s primary village and seat of government, established on Indian Island, alenape meneha, is located immediately above Old Town Falls. By the 1830’s, the Penobscot Nation had been dispossessed of much of its aboriginal territory, retaining possession of the Penobscot River and its islands from Indian Island north. After the 1980 Maine Indian Claims Settlement Act, the Penobscot Nation’s territory grew to include 4,900 acres of reservation land and over 90,000 acres of trust land in nine locations throughout Maine. The Penobscot Nation was federally recognized in 1976 and has approximately 2,400 tribal members.
Penobscot Nation's Website