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 University of Michigan, 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

A total of one associated funerary object has been identified. The one associated funerary object is one lot of unidentified thin botanical material. The botanical materials were collected in 1932 by J.E. Pearce, from the Caplen Mound site (41GV1), on the Bolivar Peninsula, in Galveston County, Texas. The botanical materials were donated to the University of Michigan ( printed page 46157) Ethnobotanical Laboratory for analysis by J.E. Pearce in 1933. Dating for the site is unknown.

The University of Michigan has no record of, nor do its officials have any knowledge of, any treatment of the associated funerary object with pesticides, preservatives, or other substances that represent a potential hazard to the collection or to persons handling the collection.

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 associated funerary object described in this notice.

Determinations

The University of Michigan has determined that:

• The one object described in this notice is reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or near individual Ancestral remains at the time of death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony.
• There is a connection between the associated funerary object described in this notice and the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas; Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, Oklahoma; Comanche Nation, Oklahoma; Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana; Kiowa Tribe (previously listed as Kiowa Indian Tribe of Oklahoma); Mescalero Apache Tribe of the Mescalero Reservation, New Mexico; The Seminole Nation of Oklahoma; and the Tonkawa Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma.

Requests for Repatriation

Written requests for repatriation of the associated funerary object 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 associated funerary object described in this notice to a requestor may occur on or after August 21, 2026. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the University of Michigan must determine the most appropriate requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the associated funerary object are considered a single request and not competing requests. The University of Michigan 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.

91 FR 46156