[Federal Register: April 30, 1996 (Volume 61, Number 84)]
[Notices]
[Page 19087]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Notice of Inventory Completion for Native American Human Remains
and Associated Funerary Objects in the Control of the Wyoming State
Office, Bureau of Land Management, Cheyenne, WY
AGENCY: National Park Service
ACTION: Notice
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Notice is hereby given in accordance with provisions of the Native
American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 U.S.C.
3003 (d), of the completion of an inventory of human remains and
associated funerary objects in the control of the Wyoming State Office,
Bureau of Land Management, Cheyenne, WY.
A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by Bureau of
Land Management professional staff in consultation with representatives
of the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho Tribes of the Wind River
Indian Reservation, WY; the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, ID; the Uintah and
Ouray Tribes of the Uintah & Ouray Agency, UT; the Northern Cheyenne
Tribe, MT; and the Crow Tribe, MT.
In 1983, human remains representing one individual were illegally
removed from federal lands by two oil field workers and were recovered
during a Federal criminal investigation and returned to the control of
the Bureau of Land Management. The 502 associated funerary objects
include a saddle, leather horse tack, German silver bridle ornaments,
.45/70 rifle cartridges, a .22 caliber revolver, a metal knife, one
pair beaded moccasins, brass U.S. military General Service buttons,
silver conchas, a silver bracelet, a silver belt buckle, a choker of
blue glass beads and elk teeth, vials of glass beads, and fragments of
fabric and leather. No known individual was identified.
In 1985, this individual was reinterred by the Bureau of Land
Management in consultation with Eastern Shoshone traditional religious
practitioners. During recent inventory of the associated funerary
objects, additional human remains including two braids of human hair
wrapped in cloth were discovered from this same individual. Based on
the associated funerary objects and the condition of the remains, the
burial is estimated to date to the late 1870s--early 1880s. The
``checker-diagonal'' beaded design on the moccasins is most commonly
used among the Eastern Shoshone or the Blackfeet. Further, osteological
analysis of the human remains, the burial location, manner of
interment, and associated funerary objects all indicate this individual
was likely Eastern Shoshone.
Based on the above mentioned information, officials of the Bureau
of Land Management have determined that, pursuant to 43 CFR 10.2
(d)(1), the human remains listed above represent the physical remains
of one individual of Native American ancestry. Officials of the Bureau
of Land Management have also determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C.
3001 (3)(A), the 502 objects listed above are reasonably believed to
have been placed with or near individual human remains at the time of
death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony. Lastly, officials
of the Bureau of Land Management have determined that, pursuant to 25
U.S.C. 3001 (2), there is a relationship of shared group identity which
can be reasonably traced between these Native American human remains
and associated funerary objects and the Eastern Shoshone Tribe of the
Wind River Indian Reservation, WY.
This notice has been sent to officials of the Eastern Shoshone and
Northern Arapaho Tribes of the Wind River Indian Reservation, WY; the
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes, ID; the Uintah and Ouray Tribes of the Uintah
& Ouray Agency, UT; the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, MT; and the Crow
Tribe, MT. Representatives of any other Indian tribe that believes
itself to be culturally affiliated with these human remains and
associated funerary objects should contact Al Pierson, State Director,
or Tim Nowak, Native American Coordinator, Bureau of Land Management,
Wyoming State Office, 5353 Yellowstone Road, Cheyenne, WY 82009;
telephone: (307) 775-6035, before May 30, 1996. Repatriation of the
human remains and associated funerary objects to the Eastern Shoshone
Tribe of the Wind River Indian Reservation may begin after that date if
no additional claimants come forward.
Dated: April 24, 1996
Francis P. McManamon
Departmental Consulting Archeologist
Chief, Archeology & Ethnography Program
[FR Doc. 96-10613 Filed 4-29-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4310-70-F
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