Notice2025-17632
Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Forests in Mississippi, Jackson, MS
Primary source
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Published
September 12, 2025
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Forests in Mississippi intends to carry out the disposition of unassociated funerary objects removed from Federal or Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 90 Issue 175 (Friday, September 12, 2025)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 175 (Friday, September 12, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44223-44224]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2025-17632]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N6505; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0041048; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of Agriculture,
Forest Service, National Forests in Mississippi, Jackson, MS
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 U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest
Service, National Forests in Mississippi intends to carry out the
disposition of unassociated funerary objects removed from Federal or
Tribal lands to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribe, or Native
Hawaiian organization with priority for disposition in this notice.
DATES: Disposition of the cultural items in this notice may occur on or
after October 14, 2025. If no claim for disposition is received by
September 14, 2026, the cultural items in this notice will become
unclaimed cultural items.
ADDRESSES: Send written claims for disposition of the cultural items in
this notice to William MacNeill, Heritage Program Manager, National
Forests in Mississippi, 6425 Lakeover Road, Suite A, Jackson, MS 39213,
email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#dea9b7b2b2b7bfb3f0b2f0b3bfbdb0bbb7b2b29eabadbabff0b9b1a8"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="86f1efeaeaefe7eba8eaa8ebe7e5e8e3efeaeac6f3f5e2e7a8e1e9f0">[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
National Forests in Mississippi and additional information on the
cultural items in this notice, including the results of consultation,
can be found in the related records. The National Park Service is not
responsible for the identifications in this notice.
Abstract of Information Available
Based on the information available, 37 boxes of material that
includes 25 boxes of artifacts and 12 boxes of soil samples have been
identified as unassociated funerary objects coming from the Owl Creek
Mounds/Shiloh Mounds/22Cs502 site that is located on the Trace Unit of
the Tombigbee National Forest (NFMS) in Chickasaw County, Mississippi.
This collection was the results of a series of Mississippi State
University archaeological field schools in 1991 and 1992 that
reexamined the site. A large portion of the 25 boxes of artifacts
include fine mesh artifacts including ceramic sherds, lithic flakes and
projectile points, some wood and seed charcoal, and a limited
collection of faunal remains.
The Owl Creek Mound Site is located within the historical and
ancestral lands of the Chickasaw. This site is located within several
miles of Tokshish, a historic Chickasaw village; and the Monroe
Mission, a Presbyterian mission to the Chickasaw. Both were located on
the old Natchez Trace. Several Chickasaw families also lived within two
miles of the Owl Creek Site.
[[Page 44224]]
Additionally, a known historical removal route, the Memphis to Cotton
Gin Port Road, has been identified within the boundary of the site.
This adds another layer of cultural significance for the Chickasaw,
Choctaw, and Muscogee Creek who traveled this road during the removal
period.
Determinations
The National Forests in Mississippi has determined that:
<bullet> The 37 boxes of unassociated funerary objects described in
this notice are reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally
with or near human remains, and are connected, either at the time of
death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony of a Native
American culture according to the Native American traditional knowledge
of a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization.
The unassociated funerary objects have been identified by a
preponderance of the evidence as related to human remains, specific
individuals, or families, or removed from a specific burial site or
burial area of an individual or individuals with cultural affiliation
to an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
<bullet> The Chickasaw Nation has priority for disposition of the
cultural items described in this notice.
Claims for Disposition
Written claims for disposition of the cultural items in this notice
must be sent to the appropriate official identified in this notice
under ADDRESSES. If no claim for disposition is received by September
14, 2026, the cultural items in this notice will become unclaimed
cultural items. Claims for disposition may be submitted by:
1. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization 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 they have priority for disposition.
Disposition of the cultural items in this notice may occur on or
after October 14, 2025. If competing claims for disposition are
received, the National Forests in Mississippi must determine the most
appropriate claimant prior to disposition. Requests for joint
disposition of the cultural items are considered a single request and
not competing requests. The National Forests in Mississippi is
responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the lineal
descendants, Indian Tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations
identified in this notice and to any other consulting parties.
Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,
25 U.S.C. 3002, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.7.
Dated: August 29, 2025.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2025-17632 Filed 9-11-25; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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</html>Indexed from Federal Register on September 12, 2025.
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