Date of publication of the press release: 9 August 2024

Contact: [email protected]

WASHINGTON – The National Park Service today announced $3 million in grants to 13 tribes and 21 museums to assist in counseling, documenting and repatriating ancestral remains and cultural objects under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA).

Enacted in 1990, NAGPRA requires museums and federal agencies to inventory and identify human remains and Native American cultural objects in their collections and to consult with Native Hawaiian tribes and organizations. NAGPRA authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to award grants to facilitate the respectful return of ancestral objects to descendant communities. This work is administered by the National Park Service.

“The National Park Service is committed to supporting these important efforts to reconnect ancestral remains and other cultural resources and return them to the communities to which they belong,” said Director of the National Park Service, Chuck Sams“These grants will help ensure that Native American cultural heritage is not stored, discarded or forgotten.”

Grants to finance repatriation

Five repatriation grants were awarded to two tribes and three museums to fund the transportation and repatriation of the human remains of 137 ancestral pieces, 12 funerary objects, and 54 cultural objects. Repatriation grants will remain available through May 9, 2025, unless the Notice of Opportunity for Funding (NOFO) is rescinded or all available funds are exhausted.

The Chickasaw Nation will use these grants to support its eight-person reinterment team that will travel from Ada, Oklahoma to Moundville, Alabama to complete the repatriation of Chickasaw ancestors from the Tennessee Valley Authority. The reinterment team will repatriate and retrieve 130 ancestors from the repository. Other nearby repatriates will be included in this trip when possible. After retrieving the ancestors, the reinterment team will transport them for reinterment.

Recipients of the NAGPRA repatriation grant in fiscal year 2024

Grants to finance advice and documentation

A total of 34 grants to 11 tribes and 19 museums will fund advisory and documentation projects, such as staff trips, advisory meetings and research to support the repatriation process.

With the help of grant funding, the Forest County Potawatomi Community (FCPC) will seek the return of ancestral remains, associated grave goods, and items of cultural significance to improve tribal well-being and address historical trauma. The Wisconsin FCPC are descendants of a significant tribal cultural group that historically spanned Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, and Wisconsin. The primary goal of the FCPC is to begin cataloging human remains and associated grave goods and cultural items for possible repatriation. Cooperating museums that hold ancestral remains and items include the Detroit Institute of Arts, Wisconsin Historical Society, Milwaukee Public Museum, Beloit College, Mukwonago Historical Museum and Society, Illinois State Museum, Chicago Field Museum of Natural History, and Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

Recipients of the NAGPRA Consulting/Documentation Grant in Fiscal Year 2024

The National NAGPRA Program assists agencies and museums in compliance and administers federal grants available to museums, tribes, and Native Hawaiian organizations to assist with NAGPRA consultation, documentation, and repatriation.

www.nps.gov

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 430 national parks, working with communities across the country to preserve local history and create nearby recreational opportunities. For more information, visit www.nps.gov and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Þjórsárdalurand YouTube.