Notice2026-05971
Notice of Inventory Completion: San Bernardino County Museum, Redlands, CA
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
March 27, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), San Bernardino County Museum has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 59 (Friday, March 27, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 59 (Friday, March 27, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 14869-14870]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-05971]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7023; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042481; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Inventory Completion: San Bernardino County Museum,
Redlands, CA
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), San Bernardino County Museum has completed
an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has
determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human
remains and associated funerary objects and Indian Tribes or Native
Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary
objects in this notice may occur on or after April 27, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains
and associated funerary objects in this notice to Gabrielle Carpentier,
San Bernardino County Museum, 2024 Orange Tree Lane, Redlands, CA
92374, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#53343231213a363f3f367d30322123363d273a3621132031303e7d2031303c263d272a7d343c25"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e98e888b9b808c85858cc78a889b998c879d808c9ba99a8b8a84c79a8b8a869c879d90c78e869f">[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 San
Bernardino County Museum, 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. The one associated funerary object is a stirrup. The
ancestral remains were removed in 1951 by Benjamin McCown. The stirrup
found with the collection contains a note that appears to read,
``Lettean Canyon 1951.'' SBCM staff believe this note is referring to
Letteau Canyon, from a privately owned ranch named Lannan Ranch. Based
on
[[Page 14870]]
archaeological context and information learned from consultations, this
individual is Native American. Archaeologists have asserted that
Serrano and Tataviam peoples have continuously occupied the San Gabriel
Mountains and the surrounding areas for up to 5,000-6,000 years BP.
Linguistic sources demonstrate a strong continuous shared group
identity between those people using Agua Dulce roughly 3000 years ago
and modern Native Americans of Serrano and Tataviam descent.
Ethnographic evidence and Traditional Knowledge document the Agua Dulce
region as home to Serrano and Tataviam peoples since time immemorial.
Human remains representing, at least, one individual have been
identified. The eight associated funerary objects are ground stone,
faunal bone, shell, shell beads, a pipe stem fragment, ceramic sherds,
lithics, and quartz. This collection, CA-SBR-00183 (SBCM-72), is from
Bryman Rd in Helendale, CA. Records from 1940 state: ``This was
probably the rancheria of Topiabit that was mentioned by Rr. Joaquin
Pasqual Nuez. Kroeber places it in the Serrano dialect, and the surface
indications resemble those of the other camp sites on up the Mojave
River.''
Human remains representing, at least, eight individuals have been
identified. The one associated funerary object is shell. This
collection was previously unprovenienced. With the assistance of
forensic anthropologist Dr. Alexis Gray, the ancestral remains were
determined to be Native American. Dr. Gray also determined the
ancestral remains to be likely from San Bernardino County, particularly
around the Newberry Springs area, based on visual examination of the
soil type present in the collection.
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 and associated
funerary objects described in this notice.
Determinations
San Bernardino County Museum has determined that:
<bullet> The human remains described in this notice represent the
physical remains of 10 individuals of Native American ancestry.
<bullet> The 10 objects described in this notice are reasonably
believed to have been placed intentionally with or near individual
human remains at the time of death or later as part of the death rite
or ceremony.
<bullet> There is a connection between the human remains and
associated funerary objects described in this notice and the Morongo
Band of Mission Indians, California and the Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel
Nation (previously listed as San Manuel Band of Mission Indians,
California).
Requests for Repatriation
Written requests for repatriation of the human remains and
associated funerary objects 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 and associated funerary objects
described in this notice to a requestor may occur on or after April 27,
2026. If competing requests for repatriation are received, San
Bernardino County Museum must determine the most appropriate requestor
prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the human
remains and associated funerary objects are considered a single request
and not competing requests. San Bernardino County Museum 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: March 20, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-05971 Filed 3-26-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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