Notice

Notice of Inventory Completion: C.T. Hurst Museum, Western Colorado University, Gunnison, CO

A Notice by the National Park Service on 04/02/2026

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• Public Inspection Published Document: 2026-06341 (91 FR 16730) Document Headings ###### Department of the Interior

National Park Service

1. [N7039; NPS-WASO-NAGPRA-NPS0042503; PPWOCRADN0-PCU00RP14.R50000]

AGENCY:

National Park Service, Interior.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the C.T. Hurst Museum, Western Colorado University 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 May 4, 2026.

ADDRESSES:

Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains and ( printed page 16731) associated funerary objects in this notice to David M. Hyde, Director of the CT Hurst Museum, 1 Western Way, Western Colorado University, Gunnison, CO 81231, email dhyde@western.edu.

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 C.T. Hurst Museum and additional information on the determinations in this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in its 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 43 individuals have been identified. The 155 associated funerary objects are pottery, carved stone sacred objects, shell bracelets, and ring with a human scalp.

The collection includes ancestral remains and associated objects from several Southwestern locations, most gathered in the 1920s-1940s by various collectors. These include an infant skull fragment from Tabeguache Cave; 25 ancestors, two canine skulls, and 131 ceramics collected by Alfred Peterson near Ignacio and Durango; four ancestors from Montezuma County linked to the Yellow Jacket site; a mother and child from Mesa County collected by Ed Faber, along with a human scalp on a ring; one ancestor from New Mexico's Galisteo Basin, possibly Blanco Ruin, accompanied by three altar stones; and one ancestor from the Mimbres Valley. Nine additional ancestors lack provenance. Funerary and sacred objects include Peterson bowls, Mimbres bowls, canine skulls, a scalp on a ring, altar stones, carved sacred items, and shell bracelets.

Cultural Affiliation

Based on the information available and the results of consultation, cultural affiliation is reasonably identified by the geographical location or acquisition history of the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice.

Determinations

The C.T. Hurst Museum has determined that:

• The human remains described in this notice represent the physical remains of 43 individuals of Native American ancestry.
• The 155 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 Hopi Tribe of Arizona; Pueblo of Zia, New Mexico; Southern Ute Indian Tribe of the Southern Ute Reservation, Colorado; and the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe.

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 May 4, 2026. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the C.T. Hurst Museum 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 C.T. Hurst Musuem 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 24, 2026.

Melanie O'Brien,

Manager, National NAGPRA Program.

[FR Doc. 2026-06341 Filed 4-1-26; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4312-52-P

Published Document: 2026-06341 (91 FR 16730)