Notice2025-14152
Notice of Inventory Completion: Columbia University, Department of Anthropology, New York, NY
Primary source
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Published
July 28, 2025
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Department of Anthropology at Columbia University has completed an inventory of human remains and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 142 (Monday, July 28, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 142 (Monday, July 28, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35540-35541]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-14152]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N6327; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0040518; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Inventory Completion: Columbia University, Department
of Anthropology, New York, NY
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Department of Anthropology at Columbia
University has completed an inventory of human remains and has
determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human
remains and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this
notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the human remains in this notice may occur on or
after August 27, 2025.
ADDRESSES: Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains
in this notice to Jill Shapiro, Columbia University, The Department of
Anthropology, Columbia University, Schermerhorn Hall Ext. 1200
Amsterdam Avenue, New York, NY 10027, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#5e342d2d6f671e3d31322b333c373f703b3a2b"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="d8b2ababe9e198bbb7b4adb5bab1b9f6bdbcad">[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
Department of Anthropology, Columbia University, and additional
information on the determinations in this notice, including the results
of consultation, can be found in its inventory or related records. The
National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this
notice.
Abstract of Information Available
Human remains representing, at least, one individual have been
identified. No associated funerary objects are present. The skull of a
single adult was found in a box during the move of the Columbia
University Osteology Laboratory in the summer of 2023. This individual
was
[[Page 35541]]
previously unknown to the Department's current faculty, so it is
unclear when or how they came to Columbia; the remains were not part of
a known archaeological expedition. The skull of this individual was
accompanied by a piece of paper with the notation ``Dakota'' but it is
uncertain what county or state the cranium came from. Inventory
research conducted in summer and fall 2024 by a professional hired
jointly by the Departments of Anthropology and Ecology, Evolution, and
Environmental Biology, yielded no additional information as to the
origin or acquisition history of this individual. There were no
associated funerary remains. To the best of our knowledge, the remains
have not been treated with any potentially hazardous substances.
Cultural Affiliation
Based on the information available and the results of consultation,
cultural affiliation is reasonably identified by the geographical
location or acquisition history of the human remains described in this
notice.
Determinations
The Department of Anthropology, Columbia University has determined
that:
<bullet> The human remains described in this notice represent the
physical remains of one individual of Native American ancestry.
<bullet> There is a connection between the human remains described
in this notice and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe of the Cheyenne River
Reservation, South Dakota; Crow Creek Sioux Tribe of the Crow Creek
Reservation, South Dakota; Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe of South
Dakota; Lower Brule Sioux Tribe of the Lower Brule Reservation, South
Dakota; Oglala Sioux Tribe; Rosebud Sioux Tribe of the Rosebud Indian
Reservation, South Dakota; Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse
Reservation, South Dakota; Spirit Lake Tribe, North Dakota; Standing
Rock Sioux Tribe of North & South Dakota; Three Affiliated Tribes of
the Fort Berthold Reservation, North Dakota; Turtle Mountain Band of
Chippewa Indians of North Dakota; and the Yankton Sioux Tribe of South
Dakota.
Requests for Repatriation
Written requests for repatriation of the human remains in this
notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified in this
notice under ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be submitted by:
1. Any one or more of the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian
organizations identified in this notice.
2. 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 an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization with
cultural affiliation.
Repatriation of the human remains described in this notice to a
requestor may occur on or after August 27, 2025. If competing requests
for repatriation are received, the Department of Anthropology, Columbia
University must determine the most appropriate requestor prior to
repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the human remains are
considered a single request and not competing requests. The Department
of Anthropology, Columbia University is responsible for sending a copy
of this notice to the Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations
identified in this notice and any other consulting parties.
Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,
25 U.S.C. 3003, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.10.
Dated: July 1, 2025.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2025-14152 Filed 7-25-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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