[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 100 (Wednesday, May 24, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33636-33637]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11009]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0035904; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: U.S. Department of the Interior, 
National Park Service, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic 
Site, Stanton, ND

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and 
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, 
National Park Service, Knife River Indian Villages National Historic 
Site (KNRI) has completed an inventory of human remains and has 
determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human 
remains and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this 
notice. The human remains were removed from Mercer County, ND.

DATES: Repatriation of the human remains in this notice may occur on or 
after June 23, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Alisha Deegan, Superintendent, Knife River Indian Villages 
National Historic Site, 564 County Road 37, Stanton, ND 58571, 
telephone (701) 745-3300, email [email protected].

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 
Superintendent, KNRI. Additional information on the determinations in 
this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in the 
inventory or related records held by KNRI.

Description

    In 1980, human remains representing, at minimum, three individuals 
were removed from Big Hidatsa (32ME12) in Mercer County, ND, during an 
archeological investigation that was conducted to discover more about 
the site through surface reconnaissance and photogrammetric mapping. In 
August 2019, a small bag was discovered inside a box that contained 
bones of identified mammals. After an examination, it was confirmed 
that the bones inside the small bag were human. No known individuals 
were identified. No associated funerary objects are present.

Cultural affiliation

    The human remains in this notice are connected to one or more 
identifiable earlier groups, tribes, peoples, or cultures. There is a 
relationship of shared group identity between the identifiable earlier 
groups, tribes, peoples, or cultures and one or more Indian Tribes or 
Native Hawaiian organizations. The following types of information were 
used to reasonably trace the relationship: anthropological information, 
archeological information, historical information, oral tradition, and 
expert opinion.

Determinations

    Pursuant to NAGPRA and its implementing regulations, and after

[[Page 33637]]

consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian 
organizations, KNRI has determined that:
     The human remains described in this notice represent the 
physical remains of three individuals of Native American ancestry.
     There is a relationship of shared group identity that can 
be reasonably traced between the human remains described in this notice 
and the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, North 
Dakota.

Requests for Repatriation

    Written requests for repatriation of the human remains in this 
notice must be sent to the Responsible Official identified in 
ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be submitted by:
    1. Any one or more of the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian 
organizations identified in this notice.
    2. 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 human remains in this notice to a requestor may 
occur on or after June 23, 2023. If competing requests for repatriation 
are received, KNRI must determine the most appropriate requestor prior 
to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the human remains 
are considered a single request and not competing requests. KNRI is 
responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the Indian Tribes and 
Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this notice.
    Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 
25 U.S.C. 3003, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.9, 10.10, 
and 10.14.

    Dated: May 17, 2023.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2023-11009 Filed 5-23-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P