# 2026-12389: Alabama Museums Return 69 Items to Choctaw and Coushatta

2026-12389, Notice of Intended Repatriation: University of Alabama Museums, Tuscaloosa, AL, is a Federal Register notice from Interior Department, National Park Service published 2026-06-22, effective 2026-07-22 (as of 2026-06-29).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-12389
- As of: 2026-06-29
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Document number: 2026-12389
- Title: Notice of Intended Repatriation: University of Alabama Museums, Tuscaloosa, AL
- Type: Notice
- Agencies: Interior Department; National Park Service
- Citation: 91 FR 37127
- Published: 2026-06-22
- Effective: 2026-07-22
- Comments close: not stated
- Significant: no
- Touches household money: no
- Regulation identifier numbers: none
- Last updated: 2026-06-29

## In one line

Alabama Museums Return 69 Items to Choctaw and Coushatta

## Summary

The University of Alabama Museums plans to return 69 lots of Native American cultural items, like tools and pottery, to the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas and the Jena Band of Choctaw Indians. These items were dug up back in 1940 from the Moundville site and are connected to Native ancestors. The repatriation can start on or after July 22, 2026, with no costs mentioned for the tribes.

## Abstract

In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the University of Alabama Museums intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of unassociated funerary objects and that have a cultural affiliation with the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.

## Effects PRIA read

- University to Return 69 Native Items: benefit, low. The University of Alabama Museums intends to return 69 lots of Native American cultural items (ground stone, ceramics, bone tools, points, shell, and similar objects) that were excavated in 1940 from the Moundville site. The repatriation was requested with letters of support from the Alabama-Cousha…
- Who Can Request and How Repatriation Is Resolved: benefit, low. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization may submit a written request for repatriation by showing, by a preponderance of the evidence, that they are a lineal descendant or are culturally affiliated. Repatriation may occur on or after July 22, 2026; if competing requests…

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## Sources
- [2026-12389 on federalregister.gov](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/06/22/2026-12389/notice-of-intended-repatriation-university-of-alabama-museums-tuscaloosa-al)
- [2026-12389 as published (PDF)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-06-22/pdf/2026-12389.pdf)

## Related
- [Previous: 2026-12388, Notice of Inventory Completion: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-12388)
- [Next: 2026-12390, Notice of Intended Repatriation: Diablo Valley College, Pleasant Hill, CA](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-12390)
- [All Federal Register documents](https://policyrisk.com/federal-register)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/federal-register/2026-12389 (as of 2026-06-29).