Notice2023-28178
Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: State Historical Society of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
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
December 22, 2023
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the State Historical Society of Wisconsin intends to repatriate a certain cultural item that meets the definition of an object of cultural patrimony and that has a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice. The cultural item was removed from Black River Falls, Jackson County, WI.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 245 (Friday, December 22, 2023)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 245 (Friday, December 22, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 88653-88654]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-28178]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0037123; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: State Historical
Society of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the State Historical Society of Wisconsin
intends to repatriate a certain cultural item that meets the definition
of an object of cultural patrimony and that has a cultural affiliation
with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
The cultural item was removed from Black River Falls, Jackson County,
WI.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on
or after January 22, 2024.
ADDRESSES: Curator of American Indian Collections Jacqueline Pozza
Reisner, State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 204 S Thornton Avenue,
Madison, WI 53703, telephone (608) 263-3537, email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#177d76746662727b7e79723967786d6d7657607e64747879647e797f7e646378656e39786570"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="701a11130105151c191e155e001f0a0a1130071903131f1e03191e181903041f02095e1f0217">[email protected]</span></a> and <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4c222d2b3c3e2d0c3b253f2f23223f252224253f38233e3562233e2b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f7999690878596b7809e84949899849e999f9e848398858ed9988590">[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
State Historical Society of Wisconsin. 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 State Historical Society of Wisconsin.
Description
The one cultural item has the catalog number 1950.6447 and is
described in Society documentation as both a War Club and a Prophet
Stick belonging to Chief Spoon Decorah and was removed from Black River
Falls, Jackson County, WI. The State Historical Society of Wisconsin
purchased this item on December 3, 1913 for $20.00 from Dr.
[[Page 88654]]
Paul Radin, who reported collecting the item in Black River Falls,
Wisconsin and indicated that it was formerly the property of Ho-Chunk/
Winnebago Chief Spoon Decorah. The Decorah War Club/Prophet Stick was
purchased from Dr. Paul Radin at the same time as the Decorah War
Bundle, which was repatriated by the State Historical Society of
Wisconsin to the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin in 2012. The Decorah name
has been spelled various ways throughout history, including DeCarrie,
Dekorah, Decorah, Decora, DeKaury.
The Decorah War Club/Prophet Stick is a curved wooden item with one
``leg'' longer than the other and a raised circular knob at the
junction of these legs. The War Club/Prophet Stick has numerous
carvings including a column of pictographs. There is a metal blade
attached to the top of the Prophet Stick, which was added by former
State Historical Society of Wisconsin Curator David Wooley.
According to Christian Feest's research of prophet sticks in ``The
Prophet Stick: Detective Stories from the Museum World'' article in
Journal F[uuml]nf Kontinente, vol. 3, pp. 96-151, these prophet sticks
were often physically part of bundles or cared for by war bundle
caretakers and were clan-owned and inalienable to an individual.
Cultural knowledge shared through consultation confirmed that these
items were often part of bundles, which were clan-owned, and should be
cared for by the current bundle keeper. The Decorah War Club/Prophet
Stick is affiliated with the Ho-Chunk/Winnebago people, who are now the
Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska.
Through consultation with the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and the
Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska, it was confirmed that the Decorah War
Club/Prophet Stick is an object of cultural patrimony inalienable from
the Ho-Chunk and Winnebago peoples and needs to be reunited with the
Decorah War Bundle. Those involved in consultation determined that the
Decorah War Club/Prophet Stick should be returned to the Ho-Chunk
Nation of Wisconsin.
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 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: anthropological information,
folklore, geographical information, historical information, kinship,
oral tradition, and expert opinion.
Determinations
Pursuant to NAGPRA and its implementing regulations, and after
consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian
organizations, the State Historical Society of Wisconsin has determined
that:
<bullet> The one cultural item described above has ongoing
historical, traditional, or cultural importance central to the Native
American group or culture itself, rather than property owned by an
individual.
<bullet> There is a relationship of shared group identity that can
be reasonably traced between the cultural items and the Ho-Chunk Nation
of Wisconsin and the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska.
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 January 22, 2024. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, the State Historical Society of Wisconsin
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 State Historical Society
of Wisconsin is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the
Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations 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, 10.10,
and 10.14.
Dated: December 13, 2023.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2023-28178 Filed 12-21-23; 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 December 22, 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.