Notice of Inventory Completion: Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc., Bradenton, FL, 51485-51486 [2020-18235]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
• National Park Service

[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 162 (Thursday, August 20, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51485-51486]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-18235]



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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

[NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0030664; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]


Notice of Inventory Completion: Bishop Museum of Science and 
Nature Inc., Bradenton, FL

AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc., has completed an 
inventory of human remains, in consultation with the appropriate Indian 
Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, and has determined that there 
is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and present-day 
Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations. Lineal descendants or 
representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization not 
identified in this notice that wish to request transfer of control of 
these human remains should submit a written request to the Bishop 
Museum of Science and Nature, Inc. If no additional requestors come 
forward, transfer of control of the human remains to the lineal 
descendants, Indian Tribes, or Native Hawaiian organizations stated in 
this notice may proceed.

DATES: Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or 
Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to 
request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a 
written request with information in support of the request to the 
Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc. at the address in this notice 
by September 21, 2020.

ADDRESSES: Matthew D. Woodside, Chief Curator, Bishop Museum of Science 
and Nature Inc., P.O. Box 9265, Bradenton, FL 34205, telephone (941) 
216-3477, email [email protected].

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 under 
the control of the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc., Bradenton, 
FL. The human remains were removed from Collier, Glades, Levy, Manatee, 
and Sarasota Counties, FL, and from unknown counties in the State of 
Florida.
    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. 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 Bishop 
Museum of Science and Nature Inc. professional staff, along with Laura 
Van Voorhis of the Bone Chemistry Lab and C.A. Pound Human ID Lab, 
Department of Anthropology, University of Florida, in consultation with 
representatives of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians; Poarch Band of 
Creeks (previously listed as Poarch Band of Creek Indians of Alabama); 
Seminole Tribe of Florida (previously listed as Seminole Tribe of 
Florida (Dania, Big Cypress, Brighton, Hollywood & Tampa 
Reservations)); The Muscogee (Creek) Nation; The Seminole Nation of 
Oklahoma; and the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town (hereafter referred to as 
``The Tribes'').

History and Description of the Remains

    Over the course of his adult life, Manatee County, FL, resident 
Walter Montague Tallant (1892-1963) collected Native American objects 
and human remains that are now under the control of the Bishop Museum 
of Science and Nature. Mr. Tallant moved to Manatee County in 1905, 
when his family relocated from Christiansburg, VA, and began collecting 
Native American objects. In 1935, some of the objects were displayed at 
the Manatee County Chamber of Commerce offices, then located in the 
Memorial Pier building in Bradenton, FL. In 1946, Mr. Tallant sold a 
portion of his collection, which we believe included human remains, to 
the Manatee Junior Chamber of Commerce. This collection led to the 
creation of the South Florida Museum on December 23, 1946, as a 501(C)3 
non-profit institution. In April 2019, the South Florida Museum was 
renamed the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature.
    In 1966, after completion of a new museum building, the collection 
was relocated to the new facility. From 1966 through 1990, additional 
human remains were given to the Museum by unknown individuals who had 
removed them from a number of locations, including 20 known pre-Contact 
occupation areas in Manatee and surrounding counties, such as temple or 
platform mounds of the Safety Harbor and Weeden Island Culture Periods. 
In 2016, Laura Van Voorhis of the Bone Chemistry Lab and C.A. Pound 
Human ID Lab in the Department of Anthropology at the University of 
Florida, working with Museum staff, inspected and assessed the human 
remains and assisted Museum staff in preparing an inventory and 
osteology report.
    At an unknown date, human remains representing, at minimum, one 
individual were removed from ``Lake Tafford'' in Collier County, FL. 
The human remains consist of one partial cranium belonging to an adult 
of unknown sex. The cranium is inscribed ``4-2-89,'' ``W.C.C.,'' and 
``Lake Tafford, Collier County.'' No known individual was identified. 
No associated funerary objects are present.
    ``Lake Tafford'' likely refers to the Lake Trafford Burial Mound 
(8CR80) located west of Lake Trafford in Collier County. The mound is 
part of a complex of 19 mounds; the other 18 mounds are non-mortuary. 
Ceramic types found at the site indicate a Late Woodland Period (A.D. 
500-1000) occupation, while Safety Harbor Incised and Fort Walton 
Incised ceramics, and a number of gold objects indicate activity during 
the Mississippian Period and early Historic Period (A.D. 900-1700).
    In 1939, human remains representing, at minimum, three individuals 
were removed from ``Green Tree Mound'' in Glades County, FL. One 
partial cranium is inscribed ``5-13-39 WCC'' and two partial crania are 
inscribed ``WCC'' and ``2-13-39 WCC.'' All three individuals are adults 
of unknown sex. No known individuals were identified. No associated 
funerary objects are present. The ``Green Tree Mound'' could not be 
found in the Florida Master Site File (FMSF) administered by the 
Florida Department of State, Bureau of Historic Preservation, Division 
of historical Resources.
    At an unknown date, but probably 1938, human remains representing, 
at minimum, two individuals were removed from ``Shell Mound'' in Levy 
County, FL. One complete cranium is inscribed ``Shell Mound'' and ``1-
12-38, W.C.C,'' and a partial cranium is inscribed ``Shell Mound''. 
Both individuals are adults of unknown sex. No known individuals were 
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
    As archeological excavations at Shell Mound (8LV42) have not 
located any human remains, these human remains are probably from the 
nearby Palmetto Mound (8LV2), also known as the Culpepper site, 
Palmetto Island, Pine Key Mound, Rattlesnake Island, Graveyard Island, 
and Hog Island. Walter Montague Tallant's journal and photograph albums 
indicate he removed objects from Palmetto Mound in the late 1930s. 
Palmetto Mound dates to 700

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B.C.--A.D. 1300, based on radiocarbon dates and pottery types.
    In the 1980s, and possibly earlier, human remains representing, at 
minimum, seven individuals were removed from ``Snead Island Mound'' or 
``Snead's Island'' in Manatee County, FL. On September 14,1989, Mrs. 
A.W. Pervis, Jr. donated one fragmented, complete skull belonging to an 
adult male and tibia and femur remains from ``Snead's Island'' to the 
Museum. The sites Snead Island 1 (8MA18), Snead Island III (8MA20), 
Snead Island Burial Mound (8MA85), and possibly Emerson Point (8MA1137) 
have been reported to contain human remains. Walter Montague Tallant is 
reported to have excavated at 8MA18 and 8MA85. Based on artifact types, 
the earliest occupation of 8MA18 predated A.D. 700 and continued into 
the Historic Period. Stokes Brushed pottery associated with the 
Seminoles was found at 8MA18, and a fish camp that employed Cubans and 
Seminoles reportedly operated there in the 1840s. The 8MA85 site is 
described as a sand burial mound with plain, non-diagnostic pottery.
    At an unknown date, but probably 1937, human remains representing, 
at minimum, three individuals were removed from ``Tidy Island'' in 
Manatee County, FL. Walter Montague Tallant is believed to have 
excavated five or six human remains from two burial mounds on Tidy 
Island in 1937. The human remains include one incomplete cranium 
belonging to an adult of unknown sex, one radius, and two incomplete 
crania belonging to adults of unknown sex. No known individuals were 
identified. No associated funerary objects are present. The Cow Point 
Midden (8MA12) on Tidy Island is the likely source of these human 
remains. The site contains a shell midden and two burial mounds. It is 
dated to approximately 500 B.C.--A.D. 800 or later, based on the 
ceramics.
    In 1938, human remains representing, at minimum, one individual 
were removed from ``Treasure Island'' in Sarasota County, FL. One 
incomplete cranium belonging to an adult of unknown sex and inscribed 
``1938, W.C.C'' was given to the Museum by an unknown person at an 
unknown date. No known individual was identified. No associated 
funerary objects are present. The ``Treasure Island'' site in Sarasota 
County might actually be the John's Pass Mound (8PI4) on Treasure 
Island in Pinellas County, a burial mound dated to the Safety Harbor 
Period (A.D. 900--1700).
    At an unknown date, human remains representing, at minimum, one 
individual were removed from ``Phillippi Creek.'' One complete cranium 
belonging to an adult of unknown sex was given to the Museum by an 
unknown person at an unknown date. No known individual was identified. 
No associated funerary objects are present. According to the FMSF, two 
archeological sites are reported along the Phillippi Creek in Sarasota 
County. However, neither the Phillippi Flake Scatter (8SO616) nor the 
Prodie Midden Site (8SO617) is known to contain human remains.
    At an unknown date, human remains representing, at minimum, one 
individual were removed from ``Riverview Landing.'' One frontal 
belonging to an adult, probably male, as well as other teeth and human 
remains were given to the Museum by an unknown person at an unknown 
date. No known individual was identified. No associated funerary 
objects are present. Riverview Pointe in Manatee County may be the 
general location where the human remains were removed. The Riverview 
Pointe Midden (8MA981) contains no human remains, unlike the nearby 
Shaw's Point (8MA7) site. The latter site reportedly contains early 
Deptford, Weeden Island, Safety Harbor, and Leon-Jefferson pottery from 
the Early Woodland to early Historic Period (ca. 500 B.C.-A.D. 1700).
    At an unknown date, human remains representing, at minimum, three 
individuals were removed from ``Midway Island'' in Collier County, FL. 
On January 15, 2013, one complete skull belonging to an adult male and 
marked ``Coll Co 1961'' and three mandibles were placed under the 
control of the Museum by Mrs. Patty Tallant Hare, Walter Montague 
Tallant's daughter. No known individuals were identified. No associated 
funerary objects are present. The ``Midway Island'' site could not be 
found in the FMSF.
    At an unknown date, human remains representing, at minimum, 46 
individuals were removed by unknown persons from unknown counties in 
the State of Florida. The Museum does not possess any accession 
information for these remains. No known individuals were identified. No 
associated funerary objects are present.

Determinations Made by the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc.

    Officials of the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc. have 
determined that:
     Pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described 
in this notice represent the physical remains of 68 individuals of 
Native American ancestry.
     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 The Tribes.

Additional Requestors and Disposition

    Lineal descendants or representatives of any Indian Tribe or Native 
Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice that wish to 
request transfer of control of these human remains should submit a 
written request with information in support of the request to Matthew 
D. Woodside, Chief Curator, Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc., 
P.O. Box 9265, Bradenton, FL 34205, telephone (941) 216-3477, email 
[email protected], by September 21, 2020. After that date, if 
no additional requestors have come forward, transfer of control of the 
human remains to The Tribes may proceed.
    The Bishop Museum of Science and Nature Inc. is responsible for 
notifying The Tribes that this notice has been published.

    Dated: July 21, 2020.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2020-18235 Filed 8-19-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4312-52-P