[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 117 (Monday, June 17, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51357-51358]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-13249]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0038098; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Intended Repatriation: State Historical Society of 
Wisconsin, Madison, WI

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and 
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 
otherwise referred to as the Wisconsin Historical Society (WHS), 
intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition 
of unassociated funerary objects, sacred objects, and/or objects of 
cultural patrimony 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 July 17, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Jacqueline Pozza Reisner, Curator of American Indian 
Collections, Wisconsin Historical Society, 204. S Thornton Avenue, 
Madison, WI 53703, telephone (680) 263-3537, 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 
State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 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 two cultural items have been requested for repatriation:
    The first item is a sacred object that is also a potential 
unassociated funerary object, as similar items are traditionally 
interred with the deceased. The item is described in WHS' catalog as an 
``otter skin medicine bag'' and given the catalog number 
MI1983.238.210. The item consists of an otter pelt with beaded limbs 
and tail, all with attached brass bells. It holds five small pouches, 
four cloth and one paper, each tied shut. WHS' documentation indicates 
that this item was donated by Dr. Hans Heinrich Reese and his wife 
Tessa around 1964. Additional information about its original 
provenience or how the Reeses obtained the medicine bag is unknown.
    The second item is both a sacred item and an object of cultural 
patrimony. It is incorrectly described in WHS' catalog as an ``Ojibwe 
secular dance drum (bwaanidewe'igan)'' and given the catalog number 
MI1983.237.571. The drum has a beaded band around its head with four 
tabs. It also contains a bell. WHS' documentation indicates that the 
drum was acquired by Leo and Bella Capser in the late 1950s or early 
1960s. Additional information about its original provenience or how the 
Capsers obtained the drum is unknown.

[[Page 51358]]

    Through consultation and research, WHS and the Bad River Band of 
Lake Superior Chippewa believe these items were obtained by the Reeses 
and Capsers on or near Madeline Island and that the items are Ojibwe. 
WHS has no documentation indicating either of these items contain or 
were treated with potentially hazardous substances in the past.

Determinations

    The State Historical Society of Wisconsin has determined that:
     The two sacred objects described in this notice are 
specific ceremonial objects needed by a traditional Native American 
religious leader for present-day adherents to practice traditional 
Native American religion, according to the Native American traditional 
knowledge of a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian 
organization.
     The one object of cultural patrimony described in this 
notice has ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural importance 
central to the Native American group, including any constituent sub-
group (such as a band, clan, lineage, ceremonial society, or other 
subdivision), according to the Native American traditional knowledge of 
an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
     There is a reasonable connection between the cultural 
items described in this notice and the Bad River Band of the Lake 
Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians of the Bad River Reservation, 
Wisconsin.

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 July 17, 2024. If competing requests for 
repatriation are received, the State Historical Society of Wisconsin 
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 State Historical Society 
of Wisconsin 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: June 10, 2024.
Mariah Soriano,
Acting Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2024-13249 Filed 6-14-24; 8:45 am]
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