Tuesday, August 11, 1998
Rich Indians Remember Leaner Times
By BRIGITTE GREENBERG, Associated Press Writer
LEDYARD, Conn.
On Monday, the now-wealthy tribe, pumped up with profits from their Foxwoods Resort Casino, paid tribute to those difficult times with the opening of their $193 million museum that honors their history.
"This museum will help us understand the struggles of the past," said President Clinton, who sent a videotaped message.
The museum includes life-size dioramas of Indian life through the centuries, including a caribou hunt and a 300 -year-old Pequot fort with a running brook and the sounds of wildlife and the smells of campfires, oaks and chestnuts. A glacier is simulated with fiberglass and a 30 -degree drop in temperature.
The complex also includes a research center with a library that can hold 150,000 books.
The tribe, which was recognized by the federal government in 1983, began moving back to the reservation territory in the
Connecticut woodlands in the 1970s, embarking on a series of ill-fated economic ventures to try to become self-sufficient.
Members of the tribe sold wood, maple syrup, lettuce, pizza and even raised pigs.
At the time, the tribal council held its meetings in a yard or homes until the members got a trailer.
The late Elizabeth George Plouffe helped reunite the tribe's members and is considered the founder of the modern Pequot nation.
Her grandson, Tribal Chief Richard "Skip" Hayward, described the lean days that included an old homestead with no running water and an outhouse.
"I remember the old floors in the house got so cold, you got out of bed in the morning, your feet would actually stick to the floor," he said.
The 308,000 -square-foot museum lies in the shadows of one of the world's most profitable casinos -a constant reminder that the tribe hit the jackpot when it opened Foxwoods six years ago. The casino has generated more than $2.5 billion in revenues over the last six years.
The huge profits have allowed the tribe to bring about 500 tribal members back to the reservation, which now has large, plush homes, its own gymnasium, community center and fire and police departments.