Notice2023-20190
Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Southwest Region, Albuquerque, NM
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
September 19, 2023
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) intends to repatriate a certain cultural item that meets the definition of a sacred object and that has a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice. The cultural item was removed from Cherokee County, OK.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 180 (Tuesday, September 19, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 180 (Tuesday, September 19, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64463-64464]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-20190]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0036574; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: U.S. Department of
the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Southwest Region, Albuquerque,
NM
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S Department of the Interior, Fish and
Wildlife Service (USFWS) intends to repatriate a certain cultural item
that meets the definition of a sacred object and that has a cultural
affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in
this notice. The cultural item was removed from Cherokee County, OK.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural item in this notice may occur on or
after October 19, 2023.
ADDRESSES: Victoria Owens, U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 329,
Albuquerque, NM 87103, telephone (505) 248-7897, email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#9bedf2f8eff4e9f2fac4f4ecfef5e8dbfdece8b5fcf4ed"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="35435c56415a475c546a5a42505b46755342461b525a43">[email protected]</span></a>.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This notice is published as part of the
National Park Service's administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA.
The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the
USFWS. The National Park Service is not responsible for the
determinations in this notice. Additional information on the
determinations in this notice, including the results of consultation,
can be found in the summary or related records held by the USFWS.
Description
One cultural item was removed from Tahlequah, Cherokee County, OK.
Dennis R. ``Siera'' McPherron received the cultural item from William
Smith, who was head of the Central Cherokee Medicine Council in the
late 1980s. When the cultural item was seized by the USFWS in 2016, Mr.
McPherron's traveling companion was Mr. Henry Vann, who is William
Smith's nephew and a member of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee
Indians in Oklahoma. The sacred item is a Golden Eagle feather.
Cultural Affiliation
The cultural item in this notice is connected to one or more
identifiable earlier groups, tribes, peoples, or cultures. There is a
relationship of
[[Page 64464]]
shared group identity between the identifiable earlier groups, tribes,
peoples, or cultures and one or more Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian
organizations. The following types of information were used to
reasonably trace the relationship: oral traditional and expert opinion.
Determinations
Pursuant to NAGPRA and its implementing regulations, and after
consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian
organizations, the USFWS has determined that:
<bullet> The one cultural item described above is a specific
ceremonial object needed by traditional Native American religious
leaders for the practice of traditional Native American religions by
their present-day adherents.
<bullet> There is a relationship of shared group identity that can
be reasonably traced between the cultural items and the United
Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma.
Requests for Repatriation
Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural item
in this notice must be sent to the Responsible Official identified in
ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be submitted by any lineal
descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization not
identified in this notice who shows, by a preponderance of the
evidence, that the requestor is a lineal descendant or a culturally
affiliated Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
Repatriation of the cultural item in this notice to a requestor may
occur on or after October 19, 2023. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, the USFWS must determine the most
appropriate requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint
repatriation of the cultural item are considered a single request and
not competing requests. The USFWS is responsible for sending a copy of
this notice to the Indian Tribe identified in this notice.
Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,
25 U.S.C. 3003, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.8, Sec.
10.10, and Sec. 10.14.
Dated: September 11, 2023.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2023-20190 Filed 9-18-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on September 19, 2023.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.