Notice2026-18318
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Cody, WY
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
September 9, 2026
Issuing agencies
Interior DepartmentNational Park Service
Abstract
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Buffalo Bill Center of the West 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 173 (Wednesday, September 9, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 173 (Wednesday, September 9, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 57373-57374]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-18318]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
[N7472; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0043687; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]
Notice of Intended Repatriation: Buffalo Bill Center of the West,
Cody, WY
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 Buffalo Bill Center of the West intends
to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of sacred
objects and that have a cultural affiliation with the
[[Page 57374]]
Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
DATES: Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on
or after October 9, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the
cultural items in this notice to Hunter C. Old Elk, Buffalo Bill Center
of the West, 720 Sheridan Avenue, Cody, WY 82414, email
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#036b766d7766716c4360666d7766716c65776b66746670772d6c7164"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f59d809b8190879ab596909b8190879a93819d9082908681db9a8792">[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
Buffalo Bill Center of the West, and additional information on 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 two cultural items has been requested for repatriation.
The two sacred objects are a stone and pouch, catalog NA.800.219.
Reverend W. F. Petzoldt and his wife, Anna, were Baptist missionaries.
Arriving in 1903, they built a schoolhouse and church in Lodge Grass,
Montana, on the Crow Indian Reservation. The two cultural items were
collected from Goes Ahead, a warrior and spiritual leader in the early
20th century. The Petzoldt's daughter Genevieve Fitzgerald donated her
parents' collection The Crow Indian Collection of Dr. William and Anna
Petzoldft, Gift of Genevieve Petzoldt Fitzergerald to the Buffalo Bill
Center of the West in 1980. No hazardous substances are known to have
been used to treat any of the sacred objects.
Determinations
The Buffalo Bill Center of the West has determined that:
<bullet> The two 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 Crow Tribe of Montana.
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 October 9, 2026. If competing requests for
repatriation are received, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West 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 Buffalo Bill Center of
the West 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: September 1, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2026-18318 Filed 9-8-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P
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