News Release

National Park Service awards $2.1 million for the return of Native American remains and sacred objects

Harold Jacobs, Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, and Joe Watkins, NPS, with Tlingit clan hat at a repatriation ceremony in 2018.

NPS photo

News Release Date: August 8, 2022

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WASHINGTON -- The National Park Service (NPS) today announced $2.1 million in grants to nine Indian Tribes and 20 museums to assist in the consultation, documentation and repatriation of ancestral remains and cultural items as part of the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).

“Repatriation of human remains and sacred cultural objects to Native American Tribes, Alaska Natives, and the Native Hawaiian Community is fundamental to ensuring the preservation of Indigenous culture,” said NPS Director Chuck Sams. “These grants are just one way National Park Service is advancing a whole-of-government effort to strengthen Tribal sovereignty and repair our nation-to-nation relationships.” 

Grants to Fund Repatriation 

Six grants will fund the transportation and return of seven cultural items, more than 3,500 funerary objects, and human remains comprising 493 ancestors.

One recipient, Beloit College, Logan Museum of Anthropology in Beloit, Wisconsin, will repatriate the remains of five individuals and 26 burial objects removed from Ventura County, California. Sometime between 1875 and 1889, the ancestral remains were removed by an amateur archeologist who later sold the collection to the Logan Museum. Representatives from seven culturally affiliated Indian Tribes will travel from California to Wisconsin to pack and transport the ancestors and burial objects back to California. Just over 1,000 ancestors from Ventura County have been reported under NAGPRA by museums in California and across the country, including Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. 

FY 2022 NAGPRA Repatriation Grant Recipients 

State	Recipient	Award Amount
AZ	Arizona Board of Regents University of Arizona	$       15,000.00
IL	Field Museum of Natural History	$       14,988.00
MA	Worcester Natural History Society	$         4,311.00
OK	The Chickasaw Nation	$       15,000.00
WA	Burke Museum Association	$       10,964.00
WI	Beloit College	$       12,242.00
	Total	$        72,505.00

Grants to Fund Consultation and Documentation 

Twenty-four consultation and documentation grants will fund museum and Tribal staff travel, consultation meetings and research, all in support of the repatriation process.

The Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes in Alaska seeks to preserve their culture through the repatriation of items needed for ongoing ceremonial use by clans/tribes of the various Tlingit and Haida communities. Clan-owned items (objects of cultural patrimony) are owned by a group and could not have been alienated by any individual. These items are also considered sacred objects, as they have the voice of the ancestors and have been in use from time immemorial; they have a history to which no museum can relate and for which no museum can sing any related song. Through repatriation, items are being brought back to life, having lain dormant for decades or a century. The goal of this project is to repatriate cultural items that are culturally affiliated with the Tlingit & Haida, which are in the control or possession of the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College, Rhode Island School of Design, and the Museum of Us in San Diego, California, so the objects can be welcomed back and reintegrated into ceremonial life.

FY 2022 NAGPRA Consultation/Documentation Grant Recipients 

State	Recipient	Award Amount
AK	Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes	$       95,905.00
AL	Alabama Department Of Archives And History	$       43,225.00
AR	University Of Arkansas System	$       55,384.00
CA	Federated Indians Of Graton Rancheria	$       91,828.00
CA	Ione Band of Miwok Indians	$     100,000.00
CA	Ione Band of Miwok Indians	$     100,000.00
CA	San Diego Museum of Man	$       47,639.00
CA	Shingle Springs Rancheria	$     100,000.00
FL	Florida State University	$       99,489.00
MO	Missouri State University	$       68,793.00
MO	University Of Missouri System	$     100,000.00
MT	University Of Montana	$       99,314.00
NE	Board of Regents of the University Of Nebraska	$       83,553.00
NE	Joslyn Art Museum	$       92,875.00
NM	The University Of New Mexico	$       99,346.00
OH	The Ohio Historical Society	$     100,000.00
OH	University Of Cincinnati	$     100,000.00
OK	Caddo Tribe Of Oklahoma	$     100,000.00
OK	Gilcrease Museum Management Trust	$       85,364.00
OR	Confederated Tribes Of The Umatilla Indian Reservation	$       97,424.00
TX	The University Of Texas At San Antonio	$       35,253.00
WI	Forest County Potawatomi Community	$     100,000.00
WI	Stockbridge-Munsee Community	$       90,233.00
WI	University Of Wisconsin System	$       98,870.00
	Total	$   2,084,495.00

www.nps.gov

About NAGPRA. Enacted in 1990, NAGPRA requires museums and Federal agencies to inventory and identify Native American human remains and cultural items in their collections, and to consult with Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations regarding repatriation. Section 10 of the Act authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to award grants to assist in implementing provisions of the Act. The National NAGPRA Program is administered by the National Park Service. 

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America's 423 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at www.nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.