Notice of Inventory Completion: University of Montana, Missoula, MT; Museum of the Rockies at Montana State University, Bozeman, MT; and University of Wyoming, Department of Anthropology, Laramie, WY, 74873-74874 [2012-30463]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• National Park Service

[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 243 (Tuesday, December 18, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74873-74874]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30463]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-11463; 2200-1100-665]


Notice of Inventory Completion: University of Montana, Missoula, 
MT; Museum of the Rockies at Montana State University, Bozeman, MT; and 
University of Wyoming, Department of Anthropology, Laramie, WY

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The University of Montana, the Museum of the Rockies at 
Montana State University, and the University of Wyoming, Department of 
Anthropology, have completed an inventory of human remains, in 
consultation with the appropriate Indian tribe, and have determined 
that there is no cultural affiliation between the remains and any 
present-day Indian tribe. Representatives of any Indian tribe that 
believes itself to be culturally affiliated with the human remains may 
contact the University of Montana, which is acting on its own behalf 
and for the Museum of the Rockies and the University of Wyoming. 
Disposition of the human remains to the Indian tribe stated below may 
occur if no additional requestors come forward.

DATES: Representatives of any Indian tribe that believes it has a 
cultural affiliation with the human remains should contact the 
University of Montana at the address below by January 17, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Dr. Sally Thompson, Department of Anthropology, University 
of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, telephone (406) 243-5525.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Notice is here given in accordance with the 
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 25 
U.S.C. 3003, of the completion of an inventory of human remains in the 
possession of the University of Montana, the Museum of the Rockies at 
Montana State University, and the University of Wyoming, Department of 
Anthropology. The human remains were removed from Yellowstone County, 
MT.
    This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's 
administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. 3003(d)(3) and 
43 CFR 10.11(d). The determinations in this notice are the sole 
responsibility of the museums, institutions, or Federal agencies that 
have control of the Native American human remains. The National Park 
Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.

Consultation

    A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by the 
University of Montana (Campbell & McKeown 2010), the Museum of the 
Rockies, and the University of Wyoming professional staffs in 
consultation with representatives of the Crow Tribe of Montana.

History and Description of the Remains

    Between 1937 and 1941, human remains representing, at minimum, 18 
individuals were removed from a complex of sites known as the 
Pictograph Cave and its Terrace area (24YL1) and the Ghost Cave 
(24YL2), in Yellowstone County, MT, through an excavation project by 
the Works Project Administration. Nine burials were reported to have 
been excavated from the Pictograph Cave, while only five human bones 
and one tooth were reported from the Ghost Cave (Snodgrasse 1958). 
These remains from an excavated context are attributed to the Late 
Prehistoric occupation of the caves, dating between A.D. 500 and 1750 
(Mulloy 1958 and Snodgrasse 1958).
    The University of Wyoming, Department of Anthropology, acquired 
human remains from the Pictograph Cave representing, at minimum, three 
individuals, all sub-adults, sometime in the late 1940s. In 1991, the 
Museum of the Rockies acquired human teeth from the Pictograph Cave, 
its Terrace area, and the Ghost Cave representing, at minimum, four 
individuals, as part of a large donation of unrelated material. The 
University of Montana acquired human remains representing, at minimum, 
11 individuals at an unknown date from the Pictograph Cave, its Terrace 
area, and the Ghost Cave. Some of the individuals held by the different 
institutions may be duplicative, in which case the minimum number would 
be lower. The human remains in the possession of the University of 
Montana were found in the faunal collections from these locations, and 
include fifteen elements from the Pictograph Cave (a left distal femur 
epiphysis of a sub-adult, a right 4th premolar, two right metatarsals, 
a right 3rd cuneiform, a left clavicle, a cervical vertebra, two 
proximal phalanges, a right parietal fragment, a left mandibular 
canine, a right talus, a right calcaneus, a left calcaneus, and a right 
cuboid), two elements from the Terrace area (a partial femur and a 
partial os coxae), and a single element from the Ghost Cave (a 
fragmentary rib). No known individuals were identified. No associated 
funerary objects are present.

Determinations Made by the University of Montana, the Museum of the 
Rockies, and the University of Wyoming

    Officials of the University of Montana, the Museum of the Rockies, 
and the University of Wyoming have determined that:
     Based on the date of the site, the human remains are 
Native American.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(2), a relationship of shared 
group identity cannot be reasonably traced between the Native American 
human remains and any present-day Indian tribe.
     According to final judgments of the Indian Claims 
Commission, the land from which the Native American human remains were 
removed is the aboriginal land of the Crow Tribe of Montana.
     Multiple lines of evidence, including treaties, Acts of 
Congress, and Executive Orders, indicate that the land from which the 
Native American human were removed is the aboriginal land of the Crow 
Tribe of Montana.
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice represent the physical remains of 18 individuals of 
Native American ancestry.
     Pursuant to 43 CFR 10.11(c)(1), the disposition of the 
human remains is to the Crow Tribe of Montana.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Representatives of any Indian tribe that believes itself to be 
culturally affiliated with the human remains or any other Indian tribe 
that believes it satisfies the criteria in 43 CFR 10.11(c)(1) should 
contact Dr. Sally Thompson, Department of Anthropology, University of 
Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, telephone (406) 243-5525 before January 
17, 2013. Disposition of the human remains to the Crow Tribe of Montana 
may proceed after that date if no additional requestors come forward.
    The University of Montana is responsible for notifying the Crow 
Tribe that this notice has been published.


[[Page 74874]]


    Dated: November 2, 2012.
Sherry Hutt,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2012-30463 Filed 12-17-12; 8:45 am]
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