Steve Miller/Boston Globe

The Mashantucket Pequot museum nears completion in this 1998 file photo.

Flush With casino cash two decades ago, Connecticut’s Mashantucket Pequot tribe made an extravagant decision. On a wooded corner of its reservation, the tribe poured $225 million into a state-of-the-art museumof itself — an impressive architectural landmark that also illuminates the central role Native Americans have played in New England’s history. Since opening in 1998, the museum has become a New England cultural institution, and a welcome addition to the region’s roster of important museums.

Now, though, that accomplishment is threatened by the tribe’s long-term economic decline. The museum closed at the end of November — a temporary measure, officials there said. But, in an ominous move, they also laid off most of the museum’s employees. Though it has plenty of pressing problems, the 800-member tribe should find a way to permanently reopen the facility, and insulate it from the ups and downs of the casino industry.....Continue Reading

> via The Boston Globe