[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 100 (Wednesday, May 24, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 33639-33640]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-11015]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0035910; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: Appalachian State University, 
Boone, NC

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and 
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), Appalachian State University has completed 
an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has 
determined that there is no cultural affiliation between the human 
remains and associated funerary objects and any Indian Tribe. The human 
remains and associated funerary objects were removed from Watauga 
County, NC, and from an unknown site or sites in one or more of the 
following counties: Ashe County, NC; Avery County, NC; Caldwell County, 
NC; Watauga County, NC; Wilkes County, NC; Carter County, TN; and 
Johnson County, TN.

DATES: Disposition of the human remains and associated funerary objects 
in this notice may occur on or after June 23, 2023.

ADDRESSES: Dr. Alice Wright, Associate Professor, Appalachian State 
University, Department of Anthropology, ASU Box 32016, 322 Anne Belk 
Hall, Boone, NC 28608, telephone (828) 262-6384, 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 
Appalachian State University. The National Park Service is not 
responsible for the determinations in this notice. Additional 
information on the determinations in this notice, including the results 
of consultation, can be found in the inventory or related records held 
by Appalachian State University.

Description

    In the early 1970s, human remains representing, at minimum, one 
individual were removed from the Ward site in Watauga County, NC, by 
Appalachian State University archeologists under the direction of 
Harvard Ayers. The Ward site is a village that dates between A.D. 1100 
and 1300. The grave containing these human remains was found outside 
the village palisade. These human remains--a complete but poorly 
preserved skeleton--probably belong to a young adult male. No known 
individual was identified. The one associated funerary object is a 
greenstone celt found in the grave fill.
    In 1968, human remains representing, at minimum, one individual 
were removed from Church Rockshelter No. 1 in Watauga County, NC. They 
were excavated by the landowner, who had found them near the surface of 
the ground and in a flexed position. The stratigraphic placement of 
these human remains and their relatively good condition suggest they 
date to the late precontact period (A.D. 1300-1500). These human 
remains were in the possession of the Appalachian State University 
biology department before being transferred to the Department of 
Anthropology, in 1990. The human remains--a nearly complete skeleton--
belong to a female approximately 20 years old. No known individual was 
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
    In 2003, human remains representing, at minimum, one individual 
were removed from Church Rockshelter No. 1 in Watauga County, NC. They 
were excavated by Appalachian State University archeologists under the 
direction of Thomas Whyte from the 1968 excavation spoil pile. The 
human remains were scattered. Evidently, they had not been seen or 
recognized as human during the 1968 excavation. The human remains--a 
partial skeleton--belong to an infant. The infant may have been 
associated with the adult female removed from Church Rockshelter No. 1 
in 1968. No known individual was identified. No associated funerary 
objects are present.
    Sometime during the mid-20th century, human remains representing, 
at minimum, three individuals were removed from an unknown site or 
sites in one or more of the following counties: Ashe County, NC; Avery 
County, NC; Caldwell County, NC; Watauga County, NC; Wilkes County, NC; 
Carter County, TN; and Johnson County, TN. They were acquired by a 
private collector, and probably were purchased from private collections 
deriving from these counties. In 1982, these human remains were donated 
to the Appalachian Cultural Museum of Appalachian State University. In 
2006, when the Appalachian Cultural Museum closed, the human remains 
were transferred to the Appalachian State University Department of 
Anthropology. The human remains--partial skeletons--belong to three 
adults. No known individuals were identified. No associated funerary 
objects are present.

Aboriginal Land

    The human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice 
were removed from known geographic locations. These locations are the 
aboriginal lands of one or more Indian Tribes. The following 
information was used to identify the aboriginal land: a treaty.

Determinations

    Pursuant to NAGPRA and its implementing regulations, and after 
consultation with the appropriate Indian Tribes, Appalachian State 
University has determined that:
     The human remains described in this notice represent the 
physical remains of six individuals of Native American ancestry.
     The one object 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.
     No relationship of shared group identity can be reasonably 
traced between the human remains and associated funerary objects and 
any Indian Tribe.
     The human remains and associated funerary objects 
described in this notice were removed from the aboriginal land of the 
Cherokee Nation; Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians; and the United 
Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma.

Requests for Disposition

    Written requests for disposition of the human remains and 
associated funerary objects in this notice must be sent to the 
Responsible Official identified in ADDRESSES. Requests for disposition 
may be submitted by:

[[Page 33640]]

    1. Any one or more of the Indian Tribes 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, or who shows that the requestor is an aboriginal land 
Indian Tribe.
    Disposition of the human remains and associated funerary objects 
described in this notice to a requestor may occur on or after June 23, 
2023. If competing requests for disposition are received, Appalachian 
State University must determine the most appropriate requestor prior to 
disposition. Requests for joint disposition of the human remains and 
associated funerary objects are considered a single request and not 
competing requests. Appalachian State University is responsible for 
sending a copy of this notice to the Indian Tribes 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 and 
10.11.

    Dated: May 17, 2023.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2023-11015 Filed 5-23-23; 8:45 am]
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