Tennessee Returns Ancestral Remains to Honor Native Heritage
Published Date: 11/17/2025
Notice
Summary
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation has finished checking and listing human remains and burial items from Davidson County. These remains and objects are linked to Native American tribes, and they can be returned to the tribes starting December 17, 2025. This process helps honor Native American heritage and ensures respectful handling of these important cultural items.
Analyzed Economic Effects
4 provisions identified: 4 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Repatriation Available Starting December 17, 2025
You (an affiliated Indian Tribe or an eligible lineal descendant) may request return of the human remains and funerary objects on or after December 17, 2025. Written requests must be sent to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Division of Archaeology at the contact listed in the notice.
Inventory Identified 23 Individuals and 360 Objects
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation identified human remains representing at least 23 individuals and 360 associated funerary objects from site 40DV53 in Davidson County, Tennessee. The listed objects include 285 shell beads, projectile points, pipes, a ceramic vessel, and 40 lots of associated artifacts.
Cultural Affiliation Identified to Specific Tribes
TDEC-DOA determined a cultural affiliation between the remains/objects and these tribes: Absentee-Shawnee Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma; Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas; Cherokee Nation; Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians; Eastern Shawnee Tribe of Oklahoma; Shawnee Tribe; The Muscogee (Creek) Nation; The Osage Nation; and the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians in Oklahoma. Those named tribes are identified as affiliated groups in this notice.
Who May Request and How Competing Claims Are Handled
Requests for repatriation may be submitted by any one or more of the tribes named in this notice or by any lineal descendant or tribe not listed who shows by a preponderance of the evidence a cultural affiliation. If competing requests are received, TDEC-DOA must determine the most appropriate requestor; joint repatriation requests count as a single request.
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Previous / Next Documents
Previous: 2025-19953, Notice of Intended Repatriation: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Chaco Culture National Historical Park, Nageezi, NM
The National Park Service at Chaco Culture National Historical Park plans to return a special quartz crystal to the Pueblo of San Felipe tribe. This sacred object was found in 2012 and will be repatriated starting December 17, 2025. This respectful act honors Native American traditions without any cost impact to the public.
Next: 2025-19955, Notice of Inventory Completion: Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Division of Archaeology, Nashville, TN
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation has finished listing human remains and artifacts found in Davidson County, Tennessee. These remains belong to Native American tribes, and starting December 17, 2025, they can be returned to the tribes. This process respects Native heritage and involves no costs or hazards to the public.