[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 164 (Wednesday, August 25, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52367-52368]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-21186]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
National Park Service
Notice of Inventory Completion: Memphis Pink Palace Museum,
Memphis, TN
AGENCY: National Park Service, Interior.
ACTION: Notice.
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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
Memphis Pink Palace Museum, Memphis, TN. The human remains were removed
from Crittenden, Cross, Poinsett, and St. Francis Counties, AR; Coahoma
and Desoto Counties, MS; and Tipton County, TN.
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.
A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by Memphis Pink
Palace Museum professional staff and consultants in consultation with
representatives of the Quapaw Tribe of Indians, Oklahoma.
On an unknown date, human remains representing a minimum of three
individuals were removed from the Bradley site (3CT7), Crittenden
County, AR, by Mr. J.E. Boone, an avocational archeologist. The human
remains were kept in Mr. Boone's private collection until they were
donated to the museum in 1983 and 1984 (Accn. 1983.74.1,
1984.8.49, and 1984.8.50). No known individuals were identified. No
associated funerary objects are present.
In 1972, human remains representing a minimum of one individual
were removed from the Togo site (3CS24), Cross County, AR, during
amateur excavations. The human remains were donated to the museum by
Ms. Dorothy Strum (Accn. 1972.31.737). No known individual was
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
On an unknown date, human remains representing a minimum of one
individual were removed from the Taylor site (possibly also known as
Taylor's Shanty), Poinsett County, AR, by Mr. Boone. The human remains
were kept in his private collection until they were donated to the
museum in 1984 (Accn. 1984.8.51). No known individual was
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
On an unknown date, human remains representing a minimum of one
individual were removed from the Hughes Plantation near Hughes, St.
Francis County, AR, by Mr. Dallas Gatewood III, an avocational
archeologist. In 1984, Mr. Gatewood III donated the human remains to
the museum (Accn. 1971.32.3). No known individual was
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
In 1951, human remains representing a minimum of one individual
were removed from the Pelegrin site, which is a component of the Carson
Mounds, near Clarksdale, in Coahoma County, MS, during a field trip
sponsored by the Memphis Archaeological and Geological Society. The
human remains were accessioned by the museum in 1952 (Accn.
1952.2). No known individual was identified. No associated
funerary objects are present.
Prior to 1972, human remains representing a minimum of six
individuals were removed near the Walls site (22DS500), DeSoto County,
MS, during amateur excavations. The human remains were donated to the
museum in 1972 (Accn. 1972.28.1-5). No known individuals were
identified. No associated funerary objects are present.
In the 1930s, human remains representing a minimum of four
individuals were removed from the Bishop site (40TP10), also called
``Big Hatchie Mound,'' Tipton County, TN, by Elbert L. Roper, an
avocational archeologist. Mr. Roper excavated Hatchie River bottoms in
Lauderdale and Tipton Counties. Dr. Robert Mainfort of the Arkansas
Archaeological Survey stated, ``Roper referred to the Hatchie River
bottoms in Lauderdale and Tipton counties as the `Big Hatchie Country'
and I think that `mound' just got added on. Certainly the bulk of his
stuff is from Morgan's Point/Bishop (40TP10).'' The human remains were
loaned to the museum in 1939, and the loan was converted to a gift in
1969 (Accn. 1969.17.4-7). No known
[[Page 52368]]
individuals were identified. No associated funerary objects are
present.
Based on the skeletal and dental morphology, as well as accession
records, officials of the Memphis Pink Palace Museum have determined
that the above-mentioned human remains are Native American. Based on
the ceramic styles and construction of pottery related to the sites,
but that are not associated funerary objects, the human remains can be
associated with the Nodena, Parkin and Walls Phases of the Late
Mississippian and proto-historic periods (A.D. 1350-1650).
Oral traditional and archeological evidence indicate that the
Quapaw occupied and hunted in the central Mississippi Valley, including
the modern city of Memphis, TN, for generations prior to European
contact. Historical documentation identifies Quapaw villages located on
both sides of the Mississippi River in the Central Mississippi Valley
as early as the mid-1500s. Based on historical and archeological
evidence, the Bradley site (3CT7) has been identified as Pacaha, the
principal town of the Pacaha chiefdom during the DeSoto entrada in
Arkansas (A.D. 1541-1543). Linguistic evidence indicates a possible
link between the ``Capaha'' (a.k.a. Pacaha) in a Spanish account, and a
late 17th century Quapaw Indian village name ``Kappaha'' or ``Kappa.''
French maps and documents (A.D. 1673-1720), indicate that only the
Quapaw had villages on both sides of the Mississippi River in eastern
Arkansas and western Mississippi, and much of northeastern Arkansas was
hunting territory. Therefore, the sites are within the traditional
territory of the Quapaw. Descendants of the Quapaw are members of the
Quapaw Tribe of Indians, Oklahoma. Finally, the Quapaw Tribe of
Indians, Oklahoma, under the NAGPRA process, have previously
repatriated Native American human remains and associated funerary
objects, and have been determined to be culturally affiliated with the
cultural assemblages fround on archeological sites related to Nodena,
Parkin and Walls phases.
Officials of the Memphis Pink Palace Museum have determined that,
pursuant to 25 U.S.C. 3001(9), the human remains described above
represent the physical remains of 17 individuals of Native American
ancestry. Officials of the Memphis Pink Palace Museum also have
determined that, 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 Quapaw Tribe of Indians,
Oklahoma.
Representatives of any other Indian tribe that believes itself to
be culturally affiliated with the human remains should contact Louella
Weaver, Memphis Pink Palace Museum, 3050 Central Ave., Memphis, TN
38111, telephone (901) 320-6322, before September 24, 2010.
Repatriation of the human remains to the Quapaw Tribe of Indians,
Oklahoma, may proceed after that date if no additional claimants come
forward.
The Memphis Pink Palace Museum is responsible for notifying the
Quapaw Tribe of Indians, Oklahoma, that this notice has been published.
Dated: August 19, 2010
David Tarler,
Acting Manager, National NAGPRA Program.
[FR Doc. 2010-21186 Filed 8-4-10; 8:45 am]
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