[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 85 (Wednesday, May 1, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35202-35203]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-09408]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0037839; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Intended Repatriation: William S. Webb Museum of 
Anthropology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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[[Page 35203]]

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and 
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the William S. Webb Museum of Anthropology, 
University of Kentucky (WSWM) intends to repatriate certain cultural 
items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects and 
that have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native 
Hawaiian organizations in this notice.

DATES: Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on 
or after May 31, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Celise Chilcote-Fricker, William S. Webb Museum of 
Anthropology, University of Kentucky, 1020 Export Street, Lexington, KY 
40504, telephone (859) 257-5124, 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 
WSWM, and additional information on the determinations in this notice, 
including the results of consultation, can be found in the summary or 
related records. The National Park Service is not responsible for the 
determinations in this notice.

Abstract of Information Available

    A total of five cultural items have been requested for 
repatriation. The five unassociated funerary objects are one lot 
lithic, one lot faunal, one lot charcoal, one lot floatation, and one 
lot botanics. Site 15McN81 (Hedden) in McCracken, KY, was excavated in 
1994 by Wilbur Smith Associates to mitigate road construction and in 
2003 the Kentucky Office of Vital Statistics approved a request from 
the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet to curate at the University of 
Kentucky.

Determinations

    The WSWM has determined that:
     The five unassociated funerary objects described in this 
notice are reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with 
or near human remains, and are connected, either at the time of death 
or later as part of the death rite or ceremony of a Native American 
culture according to the Native American traditional knowledge of a 
lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization. The 
unassociated funerary objects have been identified by a preponderance 
of the evidence as related to human remains, specific individuals, or 
families, or removed from a specific burial site or burial area of an 
individual or individuals with cultural affiliation to an Indian Tribe 
or Native Hawaiian organization.
     There is a reasonable connection between the cultural 
items described in this notice and The Chickasaw Nation.

Requests for Repatriation

    Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural items 
in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified 
in this notice under ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be 
submitted by 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 cultural items in this notice to a requestor 
may occur on or after May 31, 2024. If competing requests for 
repatriation are received, the WSWM must determine the most appropriate 
requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the 
cultural items are considered a single request and not competing 
requests. The WSWM is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to 
the Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this 
notice and to any other consulting parties.
    Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 
25 U.S.C. 3004 and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.9.

    Dated: April 23, 2024.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2024-09408 Filed 4-30-24; 8:45 am]
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