[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 211 (Thursday, October 31, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65364-65366]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-25997]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-14037; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: University of Michigan, Ann 
Arbor, MI

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The University of Michigan has completed an inventory of human 
remains and associated funerary objects, in consultation with the 
appropriate Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has 
determined that there is no cultural affiliation between the human 
remains and associated funerary objects and any present-day Indian 
tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Representatives of any Indian 
tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice 
that wish to request transfer of control of these human remains and 
associated funerary objects should submit a written request to the 
University of Michigan. If no additional requestors come forward, 
transfer of control of the human remains and associated funerary 
objects to the Indian tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in 
this notice may proceed.

DATES: Representatives of any Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian 
organization not identified in this notice that wish to request 
transfer of control of these human remains and associated funerary 
objects should submit a written request with information in support of 
the request to the University of Michigan at the address in this notice 
by December 2, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Dr. Ben Secunda, NAGPRA Project Manager, University of 
Michigan, Office of the Vice President for Research, 4080 Fleming 
Building, 503 Thompson St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1340, telephone (734) 
647-9085, email [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is here given in accordance with the 
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 
U.S.C. 3003, of the completion of an inventory of human remains and 
associated funerary objects under the control of the University of 
Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. The human remains and associated funerary 
objects were removed from Barry, Branch, Calhoun, Ionia, and Kent 
Counties, MI.
    This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's 
administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003(d)(3) and 
43 CFR 10.11(d). The determinations in this notice are the sole 
responsibility of the museum, institution, or Federal agency that has 
control of the Native American human remains and associated funerary 
objects. The National Park Service is not responsible for the 
determinations in this notice.

Consultation

    A detailed assessment of the human remains and associated funerary 
objects was made by the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology 
professional staff in consultation with representatives of the Bay 
Mills Indian Community, Michigan; Chippewa-Cree Indians of the Rocky 
Boy's Reservation, Montana; Grand Traverse Band of

[[Page 65365]]

Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, Michigan; Hannahville Indian Community, 
Michigan; Keweenaw Bay Indian Community, Michigan; Lac Vieux Desert 
Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians of Michigan; Little River Band 
of Ottawa Indians, Michigan; Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa 
Indians, Michigan; Match-e-be-nash-she-wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians 
of Michigan; Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, Michigan 
(previously listed as the Huron Potawatomi, Inc.); Pokagon Band of 
Potawatomi Indians, Michigan and Indiana; Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe 
of Michigan; and the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, 
Michigan.
    Additional requests for consultation were sent to the Bad River 
Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians of the Bad River 
Reservation, Wisconsin; Bois Forte Band (Nett Lake) of the Minnesota 
Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; Citizen Potawatomi Nation, Oklahoma; Fond du 
Lac Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; Forest County 
Potawatomi Community, Wisconsin; Grand Portage Band of the Minnesota 
Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; 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; Leech 
Lake Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; Mille Lacs Band 
of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, Minnesota; Ottawa Tribe of Oklahoma; 
Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation (previously listed as the Prairie Band 
of Potawatomi Nation, Kansas); Quechan Tribe of the Fort Yuma Indian 
Reservation, California & Arizona; Red Cliff Band of Lake Superior 
Chippewa Indians of Wisconsin; Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians, 
Minnesota; Sokaogon Chippewa Community, Wisconsin; St. Croix Chippewa 
Indians of Wisconsin; Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians of North 
Dakota; and the White Earth Band of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, 
Minnesota.
    Hereafter, all tribes listed in this section are referred to as 
``The Tribes.''

History and Description of the Remains

    In 1958, human remains representing, at minimum, 3 individuals were 
removed from the Middleville site (20BA26) in Barry County, MI. A 
landowner unearthed human remains while digging a gas line trench on 
his property. He contacted D.B. Cochran of the University of Michigan 
Museum of Anthropology (UMMA) who collected the remains of one cremated 
adult, one adolescent, and one child from the fill soil of the trench. 
Cochran also surveyed the general area, including both sides of the 
North Branch Thornapple River, for additional burials or artifacts, but 
found none. No date or time period for the human remains could be 
established. No known individuals were identified. No associated 
funerary objects are present.
    In the 1930s, human remains representing, at minimum, 1 individual 
were removed from the Yankee Springs site in Barry County, MI. Workers 
unearthed the remains of one adult male during gravel pit operations. 
An employee of the State of Michigan working at the Yankee Springs 
Recreational Area collected the remains. The skull was eventually 
donated to the UMMA in the 1960s. No date or time period for the human 
remains could be established. No known individuals were identified. No 
associated funerary objects are present.
    In either 1905 or 1906, human remains representing, at minimum, 2 
individuals were removed from the Burch site (20BR1) in Branch County, 
MI. A landowner found and collected an unknown number of human remains 
and associated funerary objects while digging on his farm. On an 
unknown date, he transferred one cranium and three long bones from a 
young adult female to a Professor of Archaeology at Ohio State 
University and member of the Ohio Historical Society who subsequently 
donated these remains to the UMMA in 1955. Additionally, the 
landowner's nephew transferred one cranium from an adult male, along 
with an unknown number of the associated funerary objects, to a local 
collector who subsequently donated the cranium and 148 associated 
funerary objects to the UMMA in 1970. The human remains likely date to 
the Late Archaic-Early Woodland Period (2550-300 B.C.) and are likely 
associated with the Glacial Kame cultural complex as inferred from the 
presence of sandal-sole gorgets made from Busycon shell. No known 
individuals were identified. The 148 associated funerary objects 
present are 17 copper beads, 114 shell disk beads, 1 copper awl, 3 
round shell gorgets perforated at the center, 6 large sandal-sole 
gorgets with perforations, 2 curved triangular shell gorgets with 
perforations, 4 oblong shell gorgets, and 1 copper gorget.
    In 1924, human remains representing, at minimum, 1 individual were 
removed from the Enos Short's Farm site (20CA102) in Calhoun County, 
MI. A farmer collected the remains of one young adult female while 
removing gravel on farmland near Battle Creek, MI. The individual was 
buried with her head toward the north and facing to the east. The 
farmer donated the human remains to the UMMA in September of 1924. No 
date or time period for the human remains could be established. No 
known individuals were identified. No associated funerary objects are 
present.
    On an unknown date prior to 1975, human remains representing, at a 
minimum, 1 adult individual were removed from the Stony Creek site 
(20IA44) in Ionia County, MI. A local resident collected the human 
remains, along with an unspecified number of greywacke and quartzite 
artifacts of unknown type, from a location near Stony Creek. The 
artifacts were not donated to the UMMA. The artifacts are typical of 
the Late Archaic Satchell Complex and, along with the presence of 
copper salt residues on the human remains, help date the human remains 
to the Archaic Period. No known individuals were identified. No 
associated funerary objects are present.
    On an unknown date, human remains representing, at minimum, 1 
individual were removed from the Kent County site in Kent County, MI. 
Amateur archeologists collected one mandible from a location along the 
Grand River near the Norton Mounds. It is unclear when the human 
remains were actually donated to the UMMA, but museum records indicate 
that the mandible was placed in the teaching collection in 1967. Green 
staining was noted on the mandible. The human remains date to the Pre-
Contact Period based on the presence of numerous documented sites from 
this period in the same area. No known individuals were identified. No 
associated funerary objects are present.
    In July 1930, human remains representing, at minimum, 9 individuals 
were removed from the West Side of Flat River site (20KT43) in Kent 
County, MI. A local resident collected the remains of eight adults and 
one child, and donated them to the UMMA on December 29, 1930. The site 
has multiple components and may have burials that date to both the Pre-
Contact and Post-Contact Periods. Historical records indicate that the 
area where the burials were discovered was known to contain a mound 
from the Pre-Contact Period as well as a Native American burial ground 
from the Post-Contact Period likely associated with the Odawa leader 
Keweyooshcum, who had a village located in the vicinity. No date or 
time period for the human remains could be established. No individuals 
were identified. No associated funerary objects are present.

[[Page 65366]]

Determinations Made by the University of Michigan Museum of 
Anthropology

    Officials of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology have 
determined that:
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice are Native American based on cranial morphology, dental 
traits, accession documentation, and archeological context.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice represent the physical remains of 18 individuals of 
Native American ancestry.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(3)(A), the 148 objects 
described in this notice 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.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), a relationship of shared 
group identity cannot be reasonably traced between the Native American 
human remains and associated funerary objects and any present-day 
Indian tribe.
     According to final judgments of the Indian Claims 
Commission or the Court of Federal Claims, the land from which the 
Native American human remains and associated funerary objects were 
removed is the aboriginal land of The Tribes.
     Treaties, Acts of Congress, or Executive Orders, indicate 
that the land from which the Native American human remains and 
associated funerary objects were removed is the aboriginal land of The 
Tribes.
     Pursuant to 43 CFR 10.11(c)(1), the disposition of the 
human remains and associated funerary objects may be to The Tribes.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Representatives of any Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization 
not identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control 
of these human remains and associated funerary objects should submit a 
written request with information in support of the request to Dr. Ben 
Secunda, NAGPRA Project Manager, University of Michigan, Office of the 
Vice President for Research, 4080 Fleming Building, 503 Thompson St., 
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1340, telephone (734) 647-9085, email 
[email protected], by December 2, 2013. After that date, if no 
additional requestors have come forward, transfer of control of the 
human remains and associated funerary objects to The Tribes may 
proceed.
    The University of Michigan is responsible for notifying The Tribes 
that this notice has been published.

    Dated: September 16, 2013.
Sherry Hutt,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2013-25997 Filed 10-30-13; 8:45 am]
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