[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 21 (Wednesday, February 1, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6770-6772]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-02060]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0035228; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: Eastern Washington University, 
Cheney, WA

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Eastern Washington University has completed an inventory of 
human remains, in consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes or 
Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there is a 
cultural affiliation between the human remains and present-day Indian 
Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or 
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 should submit a written request to the Eastern 
Washington University. If no additional requestors come forward, 
transfer of control of the human remains 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 
request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a 
written request with information in support of the request to the 
Eastern Washington University at the address in this notice by March 3, 
2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kate Valdez, NAGPRA Coordinator, 
Eastern Washington University, 214 Showalter Hall, Cheney, WA 99004, 
telephone (509) 359-3116, 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 under 
the control of Eastern Washington University, Cheney, WA. The human 
remains were removed from Okanogan, Stevens, and Ferry Counties, WA.
    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 human remains. The National Park Service is not responsible 
for the determinations in this notice.

Consultation

    A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by Eastern 
Washington University professional staff in consultation with 
representatives of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama 
Nation and the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation 
(hereafter referred to as ``The Consulted Tribes'').

History and Description of the Remains

    In 1908, human remains representing, at minimum, two individuals 
were removed from the town of Winthrop in Okanogan County, WA, by 
Captain Frank Lord. In 1910, the Burke Museum received the human 
remains from Captain Lord and accessioned them (Burke Accession #242). 
In 1992, these human remains were transferred to Eastern Washington 
University (EWU). In 2007, EWU determined that these

[[Page 6771]]

human remains are Native American, based on the identification provided 
by the donor and most of the osteological evidence identified by 
physical anthropologists. Human remains belonging to other individuals 
from this site were published in a Federal Register Notice of Inventory 
Completion on March 15, 2007 and have been repatriated under NAGPRA. 
According to ethnographic documentation, the Methow Tribe aboriginally 
occupied the Winthrop area (Miller 1998; Mooney 1896; Ray 1936; Spier 
1936). The Methow Tribe is a constituent member of the Confederated 
Tribes of the Colville Reservation. No known individuals were 
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
    Possibly in the 1930s, human remains representing, at minimum, one 
individual were removed from the town of Marcus, near Kettle Falls, in 
Stevens County, WA, by either the Ball and Dodd Cemetery Relocation 
Project or the Columbia Basin Archaeological Survey project. The human 
remains most likely were removed during the construction of Grand 
Coulee Dam or during several local construction projects in the Marcus 
vicinity prior and during the Dam's construction. Initially, these 
human remains were accessioned by the Eastern Washington State 
Historical Society (EWSHS). On April 3, 1987, they were transferred to 
EWU. Based on geographical documentation, the human remains of this 
individual are Native American. Historically, Kettle Falls and the 
nearby town of Marcus served as an important fishing and trading center 
for Native Americans (Ruby and Brown 1986:36). Based on expert 
information presented by a representative of the Confederated Tribes of 
the Colville Reservation, this site lies within that Indian Tribe's 
traditional territory. The sxwy65px (Colville) lived around 
the Columbia River northward from the mouth of the Spokane River, 
reaching past Christina Lake in British Columbia. To the east, the 
sxwy65px occupied the Colville River Valley, and in the 
west, their boundaries extended to the Frosty Meadows area. 
Ethnographic sources identify Kettle Falls as an area associated with 
either the Colville or the Lakes Tribes or Bands (Kennedy and Bouchard 
1998; Mooney 1896; Ray 1936; Spier 1936; Swanton 1952), both of which 
are among the 12 constituent Tribes that comprise the Confederated 
Tribes of the Colville Reservation. No known individual was identified. 
No associated funerary objects are present.
    Sometime prior to 1961, human remains representing, at minimum, one 
individual were removed from the city of Oroville in Okanogan County, 
WA. Based on a letter found with the human remains, University of 
Washington Assistant Professor, Dr. Robert Greengo, received the human 
remains from Mrs. John Harper, an Oroville resident, who had found the 
human remains in an ash level at least four feet below the surface of 
the ground. At some unknown date, though likely when Dr. Greengo became 
curator at the Burke Museum, the human remains were brought to the 
Burke Museum. In 1992, they were transferred to EWU. Based on 
geographical documentation and dentition condition, the human remains 
of this individual are Native American. Ethnographic documentation 
identifies the Okanogan as aboriginally occupying the drainage system 
of the Okanogan River in north central Washington and now-adjacent 
British Columbia (Spier 1938). The Okanogan Tribe is a constituent 
member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. No known 
individual was identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
    Between 1939 and 1940, human remains representing, at minimum, 15 
individuals were removed from multiple sites in the upper Columbia 
River in Ferry County, WA, by Donald Collier, Alfred E. Hudson, and 
Arlo Ford as part of an archeological project conducted during the 
construction of the Grand Coulee Dam and the resulting reservoir, Lake 
Roosevelt. That project, known variously as ``The Columbia Basin 
Archaeological Survey'' or the Collier, Hudson, and Ford Project (CHF), 
was a multi-institutional venture of the EWSHS (now the Northwest 
Museum of Arts & Culture), the University of Washington, and the State 
College of Washington (now Washington State University). Multiple 
federal agencies also were involved, including the Bureau of 
Reclamation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Civilian Conservation Corps, and 
the Works Project Administration (including the National Youth 
Administration). In 1940, the Eastern Washington State Historical 
Society became the repository for the project's collections (Accn. 
1027). Collier, Hudson, and Ford's work was published by the University 
of Washington Press, in cooperation with EWSHS and the State College of 
Washington, in 1942. On April 3, 1987, these human remains were 
transferred to EWU. Based on the geographical, ethnographic, 
archeological, and oral traditional information, these human remains 
are Native American. Ethnographic sources identify the Upper Columbia 
as an area associated with the Colville and the Lakes Tribes (Kennedy 
and Bouchard 1998; Mooney 1896; Ray 1936; Spier 1936; Swanton 1952). 
The Upper Columbia region has been occupied for a millennium, during 
which the sxwy65px (Colville) lived on the Columbia River 
from the mouth of the Spokane River northward to present-day British 
Columbia. In the east, the sxwy65px occupied the Colville 
River Valley, and in the west their boundaries extended to the Frosty 
Meadows area. The s[nacute];ayckstx (Lakes) territory centered around 
the upper Columbia River, possibly reaching as far north as the ``Big 
Bend'' of the Columbia, north of Revelstoke in British Columbia. The 
s[nacute];ayckstx territory also extended east to Trout Lake and the 
western edge of Kootenay Lake. The southern limit of the 
s[nacute];ayckstx land is found near Northport, though many also fished 
at Kettle Falls. The Colville and the Lakes Tribes are constituent 
members of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. No 
known individuals were identified. No associated funerary objects are 
present.

Determinations Made by the Eastern Washington University

    Officials of the Eastern Washington University have determined 
that:
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice represent the physical remains of 19 individuals of 
Native American ancestry.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), there is a relationship of 
shared group identity that can be reasonably traced between the Native 
American human remains and associated funerary objects and the 
Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Lineal descendants or 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 should submit a 
written request with information in support of the request to Kate 
Valdez, NAGPRA Coordinator, Eastern Washington University, 214 
Showalter Hall, Cheney, WA 99004, telephone (509) 359-3116, email 
[email protected], by March 3, 2023. After that date, if no additional 
requestors have come forward, transfer of control of the human remains 
to the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation may proceed.
    Eastern Washington University is responsible for notifying The 
Consulted Tribes that this notice has been published.


[[Page 6772]]


    Dated: January 25, 2023.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2023-02060 Filed 1-31-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P