Notice

Notice of Inventory Completion: U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Mountain-Prairie Region, Denver, CO

A Notice by the National Park Service on 03/18/2026

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• Public Inspection Published Document: 2026-05301 (91 FR 13052) Document Headings ###### Department of the Interior

National Park Service

1. [N7015; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042370; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]

AGENCY:

National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), Mountain-Prairie Region has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.

DATES:

Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice may occur on or after April 17, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice to Jennifer Kolise, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, P.O. Box 25486, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO 80225, email jennifer_kolise@fws.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA. The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the USFWS, Mountain-Prairie Region, and additional information on the determinations in this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in its ( printed page 13053) inventory or related records. The National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.

Abstract of Information Available

Human remains representing, at least, three individuals have been identified. At least 188 associated funerary objects have been identified, including: 15 glass trade beads, around six glass beads, three copper bracelets, approximately 85 copper beads, three cupric rings, 68 dentalium shells, one soil sample in a separate plastic bag, and remnants of one textile-most likely a shirt or jacket-containing at least six metal or glass beads.

Based on available documentation, the individuals and their belongings were discovered in May 1980 in a coulee on the USFWS Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) in Fort Peck, MT. No additional provenience information is known. The individuals and their belongings were sent by the USFWS to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Laboratory in Glasgow, MT for examination, which occurred in August 1980. The individuals and their belongings were then sent to the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) in Washington, DC for unknown reasons, and were returned to the Charles M. Russell NWR in 2025.

The ancestors and their belongings were not treated with hazardous substances to the best of USFWS and NMNH knowledge.

Cultural Affiliation

Based on the information available and the results of consultation, cultural affiliation is clearly identified by the information available about the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice.

Determinations

The USFWS, Mountain-Prairie Region has determined that:

• The human remains described in this notice represent the physical remains of three individuals of Native American ancestry.
• The 188 objects described in this notice are reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or near individual human remains at the time of death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony.
• There is a connection between the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice and the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, Montana.

Requests for Repatriation

Written requests for repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified in this notice under ADDRESSES. Requests for repatriation may be submitted by:

1. Any one or more of the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this notice.

2. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice who shows, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the requestor is a lineal descendant or an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization with cultural affiliation.

Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice to a requestor may occur on or after April 17, 2026. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the USFWS, Mountain-Prairie Region must determine the most appropriate requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects are considered a single request and not competing requests. The USFWS, Mountain-Prairie Region is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this notice and any other consulting parties.

Authority: Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 25 U.S.C. 3003, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.10.

Dated: March 11, 2026.

Melanie O'Brien,

Manager, National NAGPRA Program.

[FR Doc. 2026-05301 Filed 3-17-26; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4312-52-P

Published Document: 2026-05301 (91 FR 13052)