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Ancient American Indian remains in limbo in S.C.
S.C. tribes want remains, but federal rules are roadblock
By JAMES T. HAMMOND
The remains of hundreds of ancient people once buried in South Carolina continue to be stored in archives across the state five years after their existence was made public ā despite efforts by tribal groups to recover and rebury them.
One set of remains stored by federal officials at the Savannah River Site might be as many as 6,000 years old, said Barbara Morningstar Paul, the state program coordinator for Native American Affairs.
Leaders of tribes with people still living in South Carolina want the human remains returned to tribal groups for reburial. Most American Indians believe the spirits of the dead cannot rest as long as their remains are removed from the earth.
But the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act has created a bureaucratic maze for tribal groups seeking to recover and rebury the long-dead ancestors.
H.L. West, the recently elected chief of the 466-member Waccamaw tribe, said every tribal group in the state is cooperating to obtain the release of their ancestorsā bones.
āThatās unusual, to have all the tribes working toward a common cause,ā he said. āThey are our people, our kin. Our people buried their dead sitting upright, with their knees under their chins. Some of these remains were found in that condition.ā
State archaeologist Jonathan Leader has custody of remains of more than 300 individuals unearthed at different times and under varying circumstances.
Tribal leaders say Leader has worked diligently to cut through federal regulations to allow repatriation of the ancient bones. But his hands are tied by federal law.
More than a dozen of the individuals were disinterred in 1967 when Duke Power Co. cleared the site for the Keowee-Toxaway lake complex, according to state records. Those remains are estimated to have originated between A.D. 800 and 1500.
Leader said the scope of the stateās holdings of native peopleās remains has changed little since their existence was made public five years ago. He said publicity about the issue has made some entities, such as governments and private contractors, more sensitive about avoiding unearthing more burial sites. But many of the remains that are in bureaucratic limbo have been held by the state for decades.
āA great deal has changed,ā Leader said. āWe are all working together to find a solution. But we go down some paths that are dead ends. It does not help that we do not have a full set of regulations.ā
Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, anyone possessing the remains of ancient people can only repatriate them to a federally recognized tribe.
In South Carolina, there is just one federally recognized group, the Catawba tribe, based in Rock Hill. But there are 25 groups or tribes claiming status as native people in South Carolina. Six tribal groups were removed from S.C. territory more than a century ago, and might have claims on the remains as well.
Paul said the Catawba authorities āare willing to help re-inter the remainsā of members of all the groups.
āFor the first time in many years, unity among the tribes in South Carolina, and with the Catawba, is allowing us to move forward,ā said Paul, who works within the state Commission on Minority Affairs.
āI hope we may have repatriation and reinterment within a couple of years.ā
Meanwhile, the ancient peopleās bones remain stored in boxes at state and federal office buildings and in a museum.
American Indians continue to be cautious about dealings with white-led governments.
āThereās an old Indian saying, āIf you dig up one white person, you go to prison; if you dig up 100 Indians, you get a Ph.D.,āā West said.
But he said he believes progress is being made
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/news/15998682.htm?source=rss&channel=thestate_news
Ancient American Indian remains in limbo in S.C.
S.C. tribes want remains, but federal rules are roadblock
By JAMES T. HAMMOND
The remains of hundreds of ancient people once buried in South Carolina continue to be stored in archives across the state five years after their existence was made public ā despite efforts by tribal groups to recover and rebury them.
One set of remains stored by federal officials at the Savannah River Site might be as many as 6,000 years old, said Barbara Morningstar Paul, the state program coordinator for Native American Affairs.
Leaders of tribes with people still living in South Carolina want the human remains returned to tribal groups for reburial. Most American Indians believe the spirits of the dead cannot rest as long as their remains are removed from the earth.
But the federal Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act has created a bureaucratic maze for tribal groups seeking to recover and rebury the long-dead ancestors.
H.L. West, the recently elected chief of the 466-member Waccamaw tribe, said every tribal group in the state is cooperating to obtain the release of their ancestorsā bones.
āThatās unusual, to have all the tribes working toward a common cause,ā he said. āThey are our people, our kin. Our people buried their dead sitting upright, with their knees under their chins. Some of these remains were found in that condition.ā
State archaeologist Jonathan Leader has custody of remains of more than 300 individuals unearthed at different times and under varying circumstances.
Tribal leaders say Leader has worked diligently to cut through federal regulations to allow repatriation of the ancient bones. But his hands are tied by federal law.
More than a dozen of the individuals were disinterred in 1967 when Duke Power Co. cleared the site for the Keowee-Toxaway lake complex, according to state records. Those remains are estimated to have originated between A.D. 800 and 1500.
Leader said the scope of the stateās holdings of native peopleās remains has changed little since their existence was made public five years ago. He said publicity about the issue has made some entities, such as governments and private contractors, more sensitive about avoiding unearthing more burial sites. But many of the remains that are in bureaucratic limbo have been held by the state for decades.
āA great deal has changed,ā Leader said. āWe are all working together to find a solution. But we go down some paths that are dead ends. It does not help that we do not have a full set of regulations.ā
Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, anyone possessing the remains of ancient people can only repatriate them to a federally recognized tribe.
In South Carolina, there is just one federally recognized group, the Catawba tribe, based in Rock Hill. But there are 25 groups or tribes claiming status as native people in South Carolina. Six tribal groups were removed from S.C. territory more than a century ago, and might have claims on the remains as well.
Paul said the Catawba authorities āare willing to help re-inter the remainsā of members of all the groups.
āFor the first time in many years, unity among the tribes in South Carolina, and with the Catawba, is allowing us to move forward,ā said Paul, who works within the state Commission on Minority Affairs.
āI hope we may have repatriation and reinterment within a couple of years.ā
Meanwhile, the ancient peopleās bones remain stored in boxes at state and federal office buildings and in a museum.
American Indians continue to be cautious about dealings with white-led governments.
āThereās an old Indian saying, āIf you dig up one white person, you go to prison; if you dig up 100 Indians, you get a Ph.D.,āā West said.
But he said he believes progress is being made
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/news/15998682.htm?source=rss&channel=thestate_news
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