Harvard's Peabody returns Pawnee tribe's ancestral hair clippings
Published Date: 3/18/2025
Notice
Summary
Harvard's Peabody Museum has finished checking some Native American hair samples collected long ago from the Pawnee Reservation in Oklahoma. They confirmed these remains belong to Native American individuals and are ready to return them to the right tribes starting April 17, 2025. This means the museum is doing its part to respect Native heritage and follow important laws about returning ancestral remains.
Analyzed Economic Effects
2 provisions identified: 2 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Three Native Remains Linked to Otoe‑Missouria
The Peabody Museum identified hair clippings from three Native American individuals collected at the Pawnee Indian Reservation between 1930 and 1933 (donated to the museum in 1935). The museum determined there is a cultural affiliation with the Otoe‑Missouria Tribe of Indians, Oklahoma, and the remains may be repatriated on or after April 17, 2025.
Who Can Request Repatriation and How
Repatriation requests may be submitted by the Indian Tribe identified in this notice, any one or more of the identified tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations, or by a lineal descendant or tribe/organization not named who proves by a preponderance of the evidence that they are a lineal descendant or culturally affiliated. If competing requests are received, the Peabody Museum must decide the most appropriate requestor; joint repatriation requests are treated as a single request.
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Previous / Next Documents
Previous: 2025-04358, Notice of Inventory Completion: Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
Harvard’s Peabody Museum has finished checking its collection and found hair samples from Native American students taken long ago at two Indian schools in South Dakota and Oregon. These remains are linked to specific tribes, and starting April 17, 2025, they can be returned to their rightful communities. This is a big step in respecting Native heritage and making things right.
Next: 2025-04360, Notice of Intended Disposition: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Los Padres National Forest, Solvang, CA
The Los Padres National Forest found Native American human remains in Monterey County and plans to return them to the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Mission Indians. If no one claims the remains by March 18, 2026, they’ll be considered unclaimed. This process starts after April 17, 2025, ensuring respect and proper care for these important cultural items.