CT HJ00028

Connecticut General Assembly formally recognizes the life and work of Chief Harold Tantaquidgeon (June 18, 1904 – April 4, 1989), a Mohegan Tribe citizen from Mohegan, Connecticut

Served in the U.S. Coast Guard beginning in 1921 at age 17, becoming one of the youngest chief petty officers in Coast Guard history and the first Native American to achieve the rank of chief boatswain's mate in 1927

Served during World War II as a gunner with the U.S. Army's 5th Air Force, 418th Night Fighter Squadron; survived 23 days in New Guinea after his plane was shot down on July 27, 1944, using wilderness survival skills to keep his crew of four alive

Co-founded the Tantaquidgeon Museum in 1931 with his father and sister, and later lectured on Native American traditions and survival skills

Directs the Clerks of the House and Senate to deliver a copy of the resolution to Chief Tantaquidgeon's family