Notice2026-10556
Notice of Inventory Completion: Missouri Department of Natural Resources, Jefferson City, MO
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
May 28, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MoDNR) 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 102 (Thursday, May 28, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 102 (Thursday, May 28, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 31732-31733]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-10556]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7175; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042848; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Inventory Completion: Missouri Department of Natural
Resources, Jefferson City, MO
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 Missouri Department of Natural
[[Page 31733]]
Resources (MoDNR) 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 June 29, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains
and associated funerary objects in this notice to Caroline Crecelius,
Repatriation Coordinator at Missouri Department of Natural Resources,
1659 E Elm Street, Jefferson City, MO 65101, email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4b282a39242722252e6528392e282e27223e380b2f2539652624652c243d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="4f2c2e3d202326212a612c3d2a2c2a23263a3c0f2b213d61222061282039">[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
Missouri Department of Natural Resources, 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 16 individuals have been
identified. The 12 associated funerary objects include eight shell
beads, two ceramic sherds, one lot debitage, and one lot faunal bone
fragments. The human remains and associated funerary objects originated
from archaeological site 3PU200, also known as the Nevins Cairn site,
in Pulaski County, Missouri. They were excavated by archaeologists on
private land in 1981 and were transferred to the MoDNR in 2015.
Human remains representing at least two individuals have been
identified. The one associated funerary object is one lot of faunal
bone fragments. The human remains and associated funerary object
originated from archaeological site 23PU44, also known as Goat Bluff
Cave or Bruce Cave, on private property near Jerome, Pulaski County,
Missouri. They were unearthed by a private landowner there in the
1950's.
Human remains representing at least four individuals have been
identified. No associated funerary objects are present. The human
remains originated from an unspecified archaeological site near where
the Gasconade River crosses Interstate-44 in Pulaski County, MO. The
remains were donated to the Department of Oral Biology at the
University of Illinois in Chicago by a former faculty member several
decades ago, and were transferred to the MoDNR in 2012.
Human remains representing at least two individuals have been
identified. The 198 associated funerary objects include 166 ceramic
sherds, one scallorn point, one serrated point, two reworked scrapers,
10 lithic fragments, one miscellaneous rock, one lot debitage, 13 large
faunal fragments, two mussel shells, and one bone awl. The human
remains and associated funerary objects originated from archaeological
site 23PU40, a southwest facing cave commonly known as Doyle Cave,
through private archaeological excavation in 1961. All ancestors and
belongings were transferred to the Center for Archaeological Research
in Springfield, Missouri in 1998, with transfer of all materials to
MoDNR completed in 2026.
Human remains representing at least five individuals have been
identified. No associated funerary objects are present. The human
remains originated from an unspecified cave site on private property in
Pulaski County, Missouri, and were donated to the MoDNR in 2002 by the
wife of a deceased collector.
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
The Missouri Department of Natural Resources has determined that:
<bullet> The human remains described in this notice represent the
physical remains of at least 29 individuals of Native American
ancestry.
<bullet> The 211 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 Osage
Nation.
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 June 29,
2026. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the Missouri
Department of Natural Resources 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. The Missouri Department of Natural
Resources 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: May 19, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-10556 Filed 5-27-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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