Notice2026-06363

Notice of Inventory Completion: Field Museum, Chicago, IL

Primary source

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Published
April 2, 2026

Issuing agencies

Interior DepartmentNational Park Service

Abstract

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Field Museum of Natural History 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 91 Issue 63 (Thursday, April 2, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 63 (Thursday, April 2, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16725-16726]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-06363]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[N7040; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042504; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: Field Museum, Chicago, IL

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 Field Museum of Natural History 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 May 4, 2026.

ADDRESSES: Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains 
in this notice to June Carpenter, NAGPRA Director, Field Museum, 1400 S 
Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60605, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#8ce6efedfefce9e2f8e9fecceae5e9e0e8e1f9ffe9f9e1a2e3feeb"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="b8d2dbd9cac8ddd6ccddcaf8ded1ddd4dcd5cdcbddcdd596d7cadf">[email&#160;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 
Field 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, 30 individuals have been 
identified. No associated funerary objects are present. The human 
remains are hair clippings belonging to 30 individuals, identified with 
the tribal designations ``Chippewa'' and ``Ojibway.'' Field Museum 
staff believe they were collected under the direction of Franz Boas and 
Frederick Ward Putnam for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in 
Chicago. The hair clippings were accessioned into the Field Museum's 
collection in 1939. No information regarding the individual's name, 
sex, age, or geographic location

[[Page 16726]]

has been found. There is no known presence of any potentially hazardous 
substances.

Cultural Affiliation

    Based on the information available and the results of consultation, 
cultural affiliation is clearly identified by the information available 
about the human remains described in this notice.

Determinations

    The Field Museum has determined that:
    <bullet> The human remains described in this notice represent the 
physical remains of 30 individuals of Native American ancestry.
    <bullet> There is a connection between the human remains described 
in this notice and the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of 
Chippewa Indians of the Bad River Reservation, Wisconsin; Bay Mills 
Indian Community, Michigan; Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Michigan; 
Lac Courte Oreilles Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of 
Wisconsin; Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of 
the Lac du Flambeau Reservation of Wisconsin; Lac Vieux Desert Band of 
Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of Michigan; Little Shell Tribe of 
Chippewa Indians of Montana; Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota (Six 
component reservations: Bois Forte Band (Nett Lake); Fond du Lac Band; 
Grand Portage Band; Leech Lake Band; Mille Lacs Band; White Earth 
Band); Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan; Sault Ste. Marie 
Tribe of Chippewa Indians, Michigan; Sokaogon Chippewa Community, 
Wisconsin; St. Croix Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin; and the Turtle 
Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North 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 May 4, 2026. If competing requests for 
repatriation are received, the Field Museum 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 Field 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 24, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-06363 Filed 4-1-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P


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Indexed from Federal Register on April 2, 2026.

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