Notice2026-11243
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Hudson Museum, University of Maine, Orono, ME
Primary source
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Published
June 4, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Hudson Museum intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of sacred objects and that have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 107 (Thursday, June 4, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 107 (Thursday, June 4, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33745-33746]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-11243]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7204; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042936; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Hudson Museum, University of
Maine, Orono, ME
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 Hudson Museum intends to repatriate
certain cultural items that meet the definition of sacred objects and
that have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native
Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on
or after July 6, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the
cultural items in this notice to A. Sky Heller, Hudson Museum,
University of Maine, 5746 Collins Center for the Arts, Orono, ME 04469-
5746, email <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#87e6eae5e2f5a9f4ecfea9efe2ebebe2f5c7eae6eee9e2a9e2e3f2"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="a9c8c4cbccdb87dac2d087c1ccc5c5ccdbe9c4c8c0c7cc87cccddc">[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
Hudson Museum, and additional information on
[[Page 33746]]
the determinations in this notice, including the results of
consultation, can be found in the summary or related records. The
National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this
notice.
Abstract of Information Available
A total of 41 cultural items have been requested for repatriation.
The 41 sacred objects are eight `ulu maika (bowling stones), seven ko'i
(adzes), five p[omacr]haku l[umacr]he'e (octopus lure sinkers), five
mea p[omacr]haku (stone objects), four p[omacr]haku ku'i `ai (poi
pounders), four mea ku'i (stone pestles), three poho p[omacr]haku
(stone bowls), three `ala o ka ma'a (sling stones), and two
p[omacr]haku (stones).
HM7057, an `ulu maika (bowling stone), was donated by Miss Abby A.
Steele of Portland, Maine to the Portland Society of Natural History in
1889. HM7057 was formally transferred to the Hudson Museum by the Maine
Audubon Society, the successor organization to the Portland Society of
Natural History, in 1995.
The remaining 40 objects--seven `ulu maika (bowling stones), seven
ko'i (adzes), five p[omacr]haku l[umacr]he'e (octopus lure sinkers),
five mea p[omacr]haku (stone objects), four p[omacr]haku ku'i `ai (poi
pounders), four mea ku'i (stone pestles), three poho p[omacr]haku
(stone bowls), three `ala o ka ma'a (sling stones), and two
p[omacr]haku (stones)--were collected by William S. Barnes on the
island of Kauai in 1954-1955 while participating in archaeological
fieldwork in cooperation with Mrs. Thelma Hadley and members of the
Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. Barnes was permitted to take
archaeological materials with him for his personal collection.
Documentation from the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum confirms that
Barnes was allowed to keep some of the archaeological material he
excavated. In 1982, his widow, Ruth Barnes, donated the 40 objects
listed above to the Anthropology Museum at the University of Maine, the
predecessor of the Hudson Museum.
Determinations
The Hudson Museum has determined that:
<bullet> The 41 sacred objects described in this notice are
specific ceremonial objects needed by a traditional Native American
religious leader for present-day adherents to practice traditional
Native American religion, according to the Native American traditional
knowledge of a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian
organization.
<bullet> There is a connection between the cultural items described
in this notice and the Hui Iwi Kuamo`o.
Requests for Repatriation
Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural items
in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified
in this notice under ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be
submitted by 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 a culturally affiliated Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian
organization.
Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice to a requestor
may occur on or after July 6, 2026. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, the Hudson Museum must determine the most
appropriate requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint
repatriation of the cultural items are considered a single request and
not competing requests. The Hudson Museum is responsible for sending a
copy of this notice to the 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. 3004 and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.9.
Dated: May 29, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-11243 Filed 6-3-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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