Editing Pequots (section)

===Modern history===
The 1910 census numbered the Pequot population at 66,<ref>"Thirteenth Census of the United States taken in the year 1910" ''United States Bureau of the Census'', 
(Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office (1912–1914).</ref> and they reached their lowest number several decades later. Pequot numbers grew significantly during the 1970s and 1980s, especially the Mashantucket Pequot tribe which opened a casino in the same timeframe, and tribal chairman [[Richard A. Hayward]] encouraged them to return to their tribal homeland.  He worked for Federal recognition and economic development.<ref>See Laurence M. Hauptman and James Wherry, eds. ''The Pequots in Southern New England: The Fall and Rise of an Indian Nation'' (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1990); Wayne J. Stein, "Gaming: The Apex of a Long Struggle," ''Wíčazo Ša Review'', vol. 13, No. 1. (Spring, 1998), pp. 73–91; Jeff Benedict, ''Without Reservation: How a Controversial Indian Tribe Rose to Power and Built the World's Largest Casino'', Harper Books, 2001; Brett Duval Fromson, ''Hitting the Jackpot: The Inside Story of the Richest Indian Tribe in History'', Grove Press, 2004.</ref>

In 1976, the Pequots filed suit with the assistance of the [[Native American Rights Fund]] (NARF) and the Indian Rights Association against landowners and residents of North Stonington to get their land, which the Pequots claimed had been illegally sold in 1856 by the State of Connecticut, and they settled after seven years. The Connecticut Legislature passed legislation to petition the federal government to grant tribal recognition to the Mashantucket Pequots, and the "Mashantucket Pequot Indian Land Claims Settlement Act" was enacted by Congress and signed by President [[Ronald Reagan]] on October 18, 1983.<ref>See Reagan's initial response in "Message to the Senate Returning Without Approval the Mashantucket Pequot Indian Claims Settlement Bill", April 5, 1983, [http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/speeches/1983/40583d.htm University of Texas.]</ref>  This settlement granted federal recognition to the Mashantucket Pequot tribe, enabling them to buy the land covered in the Settlement Act and place it in trust with the [[Bureau of Indian Affairs]] (BIA) for reservation use.<ref>'' Mashantucket Pequot Indian Claims Settlement Act'' (1983), S. 366.</ref> In 1986, they opened a bingo operation, followed by the first phase of [[Foxwoods Resort Casino]] in 1992.  Revenue from the casino has enabled the development and construction of a cultural museum which opened on August 11, 1998, on the [[Mashantucket Pequot Reservation]] where many members of the tribe continue to live.

The [[Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation]] was recognized in 2002. Since the 1930s, both Pequot tribes had serious tension over racial issues, with some people claiming that darker-skinned descendants should not be considered fully Pequot. Two groups of Eastern Pequots filed petitions for recognition with the BIA, and they agreed to unite to achieve recognition. The state immediately challenged the decision, and the Department of the Interior revoked their recognition in 2005. That same year, it revoked recognition for the [[Schaghticoke tribe]] who had gained recognition in 2004. The Connecticut state government and Congressional delegation opposed the BIA's recognition because residents were worried that the newly recognized tribes would establish gaming casinos.