[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 156 (Tuesday, August 13, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 65930-65931]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-17976]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0038475; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Intended Repatriation: Portland State University, 
Portland, OR

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and 
Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), Portland State University intends to 
repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of sacred 
objects 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 September 12, 2024.

ADDRESSES: Reno Nims, Portland State University, Research & Graduate 
Studies, P.O. Box 751, Portland, OR 97207, telephone (503) 725-6611, 
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 
Portland State University, 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 71 cultural items have been requested for repatriation. 
The 63 sacred objects are stone projectile points and stone flakes that 
were removed from Cascadia Cave (35-LIN-11) in Linn County, OR in 1964 
by PSU under the direction of Thomas Newman, a faculty member in the 
Anthropology Department. These cultural items were identified as sacred 
objects during NAGPRA Summary consultations in 2023.

[[Page 65931]]

    The eight objects of cultural patrimony are bone and antler tools 
that were removed from 35-TI-104, an archaeological site on Bayocean 
Peninsula in Tillamook County, OR in 1970 by Ron Kent, a PSU master's 
student in the Anthropology Department. These cultural items were 
inadvertently excavated from deposits of faunal remains, and 
subsequently identified as objects of cultural patrimony during NAGPRA 
Summary consultations in 2022.

Determinations

    Portland State University has determined that:
     The 63 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 eight objects of cultural patrimony described in this 
notice have 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 Confederated Tribes of Siletz 
Indians of Oregon; Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of 
Oregon; and the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation of 
Oregon.

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 September 12, 2024. If competing requests for 
repatriation are received, Portland State University 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. Portland State University 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: August 1, 2024.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2024-17976 Filed 8-12-24; 8:45 am]
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