[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 66 (Wednesday, April 6, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Page 19970]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-07170]



[[Page 19970]]

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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0033674; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Intent To Repatriate Cultural Items: Oakland Museum of 
California, Oakland, CA

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Oakland Museum of California (Oakland Museum), in 
consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian 
organizations, has determined that the cultural item listed in this 
notice meets the definition of an object of cultural patrimony. Lineal 
descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian 
organization not identified in this notice that wish to claim this 
cultural item should submit a written request to the Oakland Museum. If 
no additional claimants come forward, transfer of control of the 
cultural item to the lineal descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native 
Hawaiian organizations stated in this notice may proceed.

DATES: Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or 
Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to 
claim this cultural item should submit a written request with 
information in support of the claim to the Oakland Museum at the 
address in this notice by May 6, 2022.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anna Bunting, Registrar, Oakland 
Museum of California, 1000 Oak Street, Oakland, CA 94607, telephone 
(510) 318-8493, 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. 3005, of the intent to repatriate a cultural item under the 
control of the Oakland Museum of California, Oakland, CA, that meets 
the definition of an object of cultural patrimony under 25 U.S.C. 3001.
    This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's 
administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003(d)(3). The 
determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the 
museum, institution, or Federal agency that has control of the Native 
American cultural items. The National Park Service is not responsible 
for the determinations in this notice.

History and Description of the Cultural Item

    Between 1897 and 1928, one cultural item was removed from Wrangell, 
AK, by Fred W. Carlyon, a local shop owner, and his sister, Anna 
Vaughn. Carlyon and Vaughn collected the Aankh[aacute]awu Woodazkaa, or 
Speaker's Staff, during their time in Wrangell in the late 19th and 
early 20th centuries. Subsequently, the Speaker's Staff passed from the 
collectors to Miss Vaughn's daughter, Dorothy K. Haberman. In 1959, 
Mrs. Haberman donated the staff to the Oakland Museum of California 
(catalog number H4153.2). The object of cultural patrimony is an 
Aankh[aacute]awu Woodazkaa, or Speaker's Staff. It is approximately 58 
inches long and is made of cedar. The body displays carved animal 
figures. The object is topped with a bird form, below which is a human 
figure with a potlatch hat and abalone inlay for the eyes.
    The area of Wrangell, AK, where this object originated, is the home 
of the Shx'at Kwaan (Wrangell People), who collectively are also known 
as the Shx'at Kwaan Federation and the Tlingit people of Southeastern 
Alaska. Today, the Shx'at Kwaan (Wrangell People) is represented by the 
Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes.
    The Aankh[aacute]awu Woodazkaa, or Speaker's Staff, is identified 
in museum records as Kadashan's Staff. Chief Kadashan was a leader of 
the Kaasx 'agweidi, the Tlingit Raven clan in Wrangell, AK. Information 
provided during tribal consultation, as well as museum records and 
academic sources, including a historic photograph of the staff while it 
was still among the Tlingit in Wrangell, all support a Tlingit cultural 
affiliation for this object. According to information provided during 
tribal consultation, the Aankh[aacute]awu Woodazkaa, or Speaker's 
Staff, is a particularly important item of chiefly regalia, as it was 
only brought out on occasions of great importance to command, unify, 
and represent clan members. Additional information provided during 
tribal consultation also indicates that the Aankh[aacute]awu Woodazkaa, 
or Speaker's Staff, is a clan-owned object brought out in ceremonies by 
a clan-appointed caretaker, and that it could not be alienated without 
the consent of the entire clan.

Determinations Made by the Oakland Museum of California

    Officials of the Oakland Museum of California have determined that:
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(3)(D), the one cultural item 
described above has ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural 
importance central to the Native American group or culture itself, 
rather than property owned by an individual.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), there is a relationship of 
shared group identity that can be reasonably traced between the object 
of cultural patrimony and the Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida 
Indian Tribes.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native 
Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to claim 
this cultural item should submit a written request with information in 
support of the claim to Anna Bunting, Registrar, Oakland Museum of 
California, 1000 Oak Street, Oakland, CA 94607, telephone (510) 318-
8493, email [email protected], by May 6, 2022. After that date, if no 
additional claimants have come forward, transfer of control of the 
object of cultural patrimony to the Central Council of the Tlingit & 
Haida Indian Tribes may proceed.
    The Oakland Museum of California is responsible for notifying the 
Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes that this notice 
has been published.

    Dated: March 30, 2022.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2022-07170 Filed 4-5-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P