[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 196 (Tuesday, October 12, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60652-60653]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-22833]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service


Notice of Inventory Completion: The Catholic University of 
America, Washington, DC

AGENCY: National Park Service.

ACTION: Notice.

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    Notice is here given in accordance with provisions of the Native 
American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 U.S.C. 
3003, of the completion of an inventory of human remains and associated 
funerary object in the possession of the Catholic University of 
America, Washington, DC. The human remains and associated funerary 
object were removed from Custer County, MT, and from an unknown 
location in Wyoming.
    This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's 
administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003 (d)(3). 
The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the 
museum, institution, or Federal agency that has control of the Native 
American human remains and associated funerary object. The National 
Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.
    A detailed assessment of the human remains and associated funerary 
object was made by the Catholic University of America professional 
staff in consultation with representatives of the Crow Tribe of Montana 
and Northern Cheyenne Tribe of the Northern Cheyenne Indian 
Reservation, Montana.

[[Page 60653]]

At the request of representatives of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe of the 
Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Montana, the Catholic University 
of America also consulted with Dr. William Billeck, Repatriation 
Office, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, 
Washington, DC.

    In 1882, human remains representing four individuals were collected 
by Father Eli Lindesmith in the vicinity of Fort Keogh, Custer County, 
MT. Three of the four human remains were collected on August 14, 1882. 
The exact date of collection of the remains of the fourth individual is 
unknown. Father Lindesmith served as military chaplain at Fort Keogh 
from 1880-1891, establishing a mission among the Crow, Sioux, and 
Cheyenne and serving the local white settlers and military personnel. 
No known individuals were identified. The one associated funerary 
object is a wooden burial board.
    The human remains of one individual (AN1996-159) were recovered 
along the north side of the Yellowstone River, ``opposite the company 
garden.'' The human remains of a second individual (AN1996-197.2) and a 
wooden burial board (AN1996-197.1-.3) were recovered from beneath a 
cedar tree in which they had originally been placed to protect the 
human remains from wolves. Father Lindesmith indicated that these human 
remains were ``supposed to be a Sioux.'' During consultation, Dr. 
Billeck observed, ``The wooden board is from a Crow type cradle, and is 
not a type used by the Sioux or Cheyenne. The association of the 
skeletal remains under the same tree as the Crow cradle board, suggest 
that the human remains are Crow.'' The human remains of a third 
individual (AN1996-260) were recovered from an unknown site within 3 
miles of Fort Keogh, MT. The human remains of a fourth individual 
(AN1996-160) were given to Father Lindesmith and are believed to have 
been recovered from an unknown site in Wyoming. In a November 9, 1893, 
letter to the Catholic University of America, Father Lindesmith stated, 
``I do not know whether they are Indian skulls or not.'' During 
consultation, Dr. Billeck observed, ``The three cranial fragments from 
Wyoming have been identified as human'' and ``show evidence that they 
were obtained from an individual whose crania had been weathered by 
surface exposure and not by burial in the ground.''
    In 1893, Father Lindesmith donated the four human remains and one 
associated funerary object to the Catholic University of America. 
Osteological examination and historical documentation confirms that the 
human remains are of four Native American individuals. All of the human 
remains are believed to have been interred during the middle-to late-
19th century.
    Officials of the Catholic University of America have determined 
that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001 (9-10), the human remains described 
above represent the physical remains of four individuals of Native 
American ancestry. Officials of the Catholic University of America also 
have determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001 (3)(A), the one object 
described above is 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. Lastly, officials of the Catholic University of 
America have determined that, pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001 (2), there is 
a relationship of shared group identity that can be reasonably traced 
between the Native American human remains and associated funerary 
object and the Crow Tribe of Montana.
    Representatives of any other Indian tribe that believes itself to 
be culturally affiliated with the human remains and associated funerary 
object should contact Timothy J. Meagher, Archivist and Museum 
Director, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC 20064, 
telephone (202) 319-5152, before November 12, 2004. Repatriation of the 
human remains and associated funerary object to the Crow tribe may 
proceed after that date if no additional claimants come forward.
    The Catholic University of America is responsible for notifying the 
Crow Tribe of Montana and Northern Cheyenne Tribe of the Northern 
Cheyenne Indian Reservation, Montana that this notice has been 
published.

    Date: September 1, 2004.
Sherry Hutt,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 04-22833 Filed 10-8-04; 8:45 am]
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