81 FR 35347 - Requests To Exhume and Repatriate Native American Burials From Carlisle Indian Industrial School Cemetery; Public Listening Sessions

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Department of the Army

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 106 (June 2, 2016)

The Army National Military Cemeteries (ANMC) announces that it will hold two public listening sessions to solicit information on tribal requests for exhumation of Native American human remains from the former Carlisle Indian Industrial School Cemetery located on Carlisle Barracks, PA. ANMC has received requests from two tribes to disinter and repatriate the remains of tribal children buried at this cemetery. The listening sessions will be held in conjunction with the National Council of the American Indian mid-year conference in Spokane, WA and the United South and Eastern Tribes annual meeting in Cherokee, NC. The listening sessions are intended to provide any tribe that may have tribal members buried in this cemetery with an opportunity to share their views on this topic with Agency representatives, along with any data or analysis they may have. All comments will be transcribed and available upon request from Mr. Art Smith, whose contact information is listed below in this notice. We encourage tribes to participate in these listening sessions.

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 106 (Thursday, June 2, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35347-35348]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-12910]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

Department of the Army


Requests To Exhume and Repatriate Native American Burials From 
Carlisle Indian Industrial School Cemetery; Public Listening Sessions

AGENCY: Department of the Army, DoD.

ACTION: Notice of public listening sessions.

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SUMMARY: The Army National Military Cemeteries (ANMC) announces that it 
will hold two public listening sessions to solicit information on 
tribal requests for exhumation of Native American human remains from 
the former Carlisle Indian Industrial School Cemetery located on 
Carlisle Barracks, PA. ANMC has received requests from two tribes to 
disinter and repatriate the remains of tribal children buried at this 
cemetery. The listening sessions will be held in conjunction with the 
National Council of the American Indian mid-year conference in Spokane, 
WA and the United South and Eastern Tribes annual meeting in Cherokee, 
NC. The listening sessions are intended to provide any tribe that may 
have tribal members buried in this cemetery with an opportunity to 
share their views on this topic with Agency representatives, along with 
any data or analysis they may have. All comments will be transcribed 
and available upon request from Mr. Art Smith, whose contact 
information is listed below in this notice. We encourage tribes to 
participate in these listening sessions.

DATES: The listening sessions will be held on Monday, June 27, 2016, 
from 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m., Local Time, and on Wednesday, October 26, 
2016, from 1:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., Local Time. If all interested 
parties have had the opportunity to comment, the sessions may conclude 
early.

ADDRESSES: The June 27th listening session will be held at the Spokane 
Convention Center, Room 301, 334 West Spokane Falls Blvd., Spokane, WA 
99201. The October 26th session will be held at the Harrah's Cherokee 
Hotel and Casino, 777 Casino Dr., Cherokee, NC 28719. In addition to 
attending the session in person, the Agency offers several ways to 
provide comments, as enumerated below.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Arthur Smith, Army National 
Military Cemeteries at: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Submitting Comments: ANMC is accepting public comments through 
October 30, 2016. You may submit your comments and material by mail, or 
email, but please use only one of these means. ANMC recommends that you 
include your name and a mailing address, an email address, or a phone 
number in the body of your document so that ANMC can contact you if 
there are questions regarding your submission.
    If you submit your comments by mail or hand delivery, submit them 
in an unbound format, no larger than 8\1/2\ by 11 inches, suitable for 
copying and electronic filing. If you submit comments by mail and would 
like to know that they reached the facility, please enclose a stamped, 
self-addressed postcard or envelope. Choose whether you are submitting 
your comment as a representative of a known individual buried at 
Carlisle cemetery or as a representative of a tribal government and 
then submit.
    We will consider all comments and material received during the 
comment period, October 30, 2016.
    You may submit comments identified by:
    Mail: Army National Military Cemeteries, 1 Memorial Drive, 
Arlington, VA 22211.
    Email: [email protected].
    Background: In January 2016, Army received requests from two tribes 
to exhume the remains of tribal

[[Page 35348]]

individuals buried in the Carlisle Indian Industrial School cemetery 
and repatriate those remains to the tribe. Historic records indicate 
that the School and cemetery were operated from 1879 until 1918, under 
the direction of the Indian Bureau. In 1918, the Army regained control 
of the property and established a hospital to care for the large number 
of wounded returning from the European battlefield. The exact number of 
Native Americans interred in the cemetery is uncertain as the cemetery 
includes a number of non-Natives and unknown burials. Army is working 
with the Bureau of Indian Affairs to obtain school records which may 
provide additional details on those buried in this cemetery.
    Army Regulation 210-190 requires specific documentation to 
establish the identity of the living relatives with closest familial 
ties and the legal authority to represent the family. The Army 
recognizes that since the deceased were children and it is unlikely 
that there are direct descendants, tracing other relatives may be a 
more involved process.
    Meeting Participation and Information ANMC seeks from the public: 
ANMC would like to know the views of the affected tribes and families 
on the issue of disinterment from the Carlisle cemetery. The listening 
session is open to the public. Speakers should try to limit their 
remarks to 3-5 minutes. No preregistration is required. Attendees may 
submit material to the ANMC staff at the session or through other means 
provided above.

Patrick K. Hallinan,
Executive Director, Army National Military Cemeteries.
[FR Doc. 2016-12910 Filed 6-1-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 5001-03-P