News Release

National Park Service Awards Historic Preservation Grants to American Indian Tribes, Alaskan Natives, and Native Hawaiian Organizations

Women documenting Klukwan's woolen weaving traditions.

Photo Credit: Lani S. Hotch

News Release Date: September 7, 2018

Contact: [e-mail]

WASHINGTON - The National Park Service today announced $986,691 in Tribal Heritage Grants to support cultural and historic preservation projects that protect and promote the unique heritage and traditions of America’s native cultures.

"The 23 projects funded by these grants will help American Indians, Alaskan Natives, and Native Hawaiians to ensure the survival of their cultural heritage, including traditional arts, skills, education, and ceremonies," said National Park Service Deputy Director P. Daniel Smith.

Projects funded by these grants will:

• Locate and identify cultural resources
• Preserve historic properties listed in the National Register of Historic Places
• Support comprehensive preservation planning
• Preserve oral history and cultural traditions
• Provide training for building a historic preservation program
• Support cultural and historic preservation interpretation and education

Congress appropriates funding for the Tribal Heritage Grant Program through the Historic Preservation Fund (HPF). The HPF uses revenue from federal oil leases on the Outer Continental Shelf to provide assistance for a broad range of preservation projects.

Examples of projects funded in 2018 include:

• The Mescalero Apache Tribe (New Mexico) will use grant funds to conduct oral histories regarding the “Girls Ceremony”, a traditional coming of age ceremony for young Apache girls. Funds will transcribe and record the related ceremonial songs, stories, and prayers in the required language of the Mescalero Apache.
• The Seneca Nation (New York) plans to use funds to repair the Allegany Council House, which was recently nominated for inclusion in the National Register. The building’s significance is related to two historical events in the Tribe’s history - the right for Seneca Nation women to vote, and resistance to the development of the Kinzua Dam. The house will be used as an educational facility once repairs are completed.
• The Knik Tribe (Alaska) will conduct an archaeological evaluation and survey of numerous Knikatnu settlement sites for National Register eligibility. The project will introduce archaeological investigation and field training to Native American youth.

Following is the full list of projects funded in 2018:
 

Grantee	Project	State	Amount
Leinsoi, Inc.	Leisnoi Lands Survey	Alaska	$43,075
Knik Tribe	Phase II Evaluation of Cultural Sites on Knikatnu Inc. Parcels.	Alaska	$43,200
Native Village of Eyak	Traditional Boat Building Project	Alaska	$43,200
Hualapai Tribe	Historic Preservation and Education Through Story Maps	Arizona	$43,200
Bishop Paiute Tribe	Tribal Interpretation and Education of Land and Plant Resources Through Outreach and Exhibits at the Owens Valley Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center	California	$43,200
Hula Preservation Society	I Ulu No Ka Lala I Ke Kumu (The Branches Grow Because of the Teacher/ Trunk/ Source)	Hawaii	$43,170
Sac and Fox Tribe of the Mississippi in Iowa	Meskwaki Cattail/Bulrush Mat Making	Iowa	$43,200
Aroostook Band of Micmacs	Preservation of Mi'kmaq Porcupine Quill Embroidery Skills	Maine	$42,880
Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe of Michigan	Mount Pleasant Indian Industrial Boarding School Initiative	Michigan	$63,200
Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians	Eyaawing Cultural Education Project	Michigan	$30,608
Pueblo of Acoma	Creating an Archaeological Survey Project for the Pueblo of Acoma	New Mexico	$43,181
Mescalero Apache Tribe	The Mescalero Apache Tribe’s Girls Ceremony	New Mexico	$43,200
Pueblo of Pojoaque	Documenting the Past to Plan for the Future.	New Mexico	$43,200
Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California	Washoe Homelands Mapping Project	Nevada	$43,200
Seneca Nation of Indians	SNI THPO Council House Renovation	New York	$39,550
Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe	Akwesasne Stories Project	New York	$43,200
Ponca Tribe of Oklahoma	Ponca Hymnal Book & Recordings	Oklahoma	$43,200
The Chickasaw Nation	Preserving Sacred Stories of the Chickasaw People	Oklahoma	$33,065
United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma	Creating United Keetoowah Band Cultural Resource Database and Historical Mapping Preservation System	Oklahoma	$43,200
Delaware Tribe of Indians	Collaborative Archaeological Survey of Delaware Sacred Sites in Northeastern Oklahoma	Oklahoma	$43,200
Lummi Nation	Lummi Nation Tribal Heritage Sites Access/Protection Plans and Facilities	Washington	$43,200
Makah Indian Tribe	Makah Interpretive Guide Training	Washington	$43,162
Bad River Band of Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians	Bad River Cultural Site Preservation Project	Wisconsin	$43,200
TOTAL			$986,691

www.nps.gov
 

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