Notice of Inventory Completion for Native American Human Remains and Associated Funerary Objects in the Possession of the Air Force Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, CA

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

National Park Service

Notice of Inventory Completion for Native American Human Remains

and Associated Funerary Objects in the Possession of the Air Force

Flight Test Center, Edwards Air Force Base, CA

AGENCY: National Park Service, DOI.

ACTION: Notice.

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Notice is hereby given in accordance with provisions of the Native

American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), 43 CFR 10.9,

of the completion of an inventory of human remains and associated

funerary objects in the possession of the Air Force Flight Test Center

(AFFTC), Edwards Air Force Base, CA.

A detailed assessment of the human remains was made by AFFTC

professional staff in consultation with representatives of the

Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the Chemehuevi Reservation, the San Manuel

Band of Serrano Mission Indians of the San Manual Reservation, the

Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission Indians of the Morongo Reservation,

and the Colorado River Indian Tribes of the Colorado River Indian

Reservation.

SUMMARY: Between 1972 and 1990, human remains representing nine

individuals were recovered from five archaeological sites on Edwards

Air Force Base (EAFB). These sites include: CA-LAN-1296 (one possible

and three probable cremations); CA-KER-2060/H (one cremation and one

inhumation); CA-KER-2241 (one interment unknown type); CA-LAN-1158 (one

cremation); and CA-KER-796 (one interment, unknown type). No known

individuals were identified. Associated funerary objects include three

projectile points (two arrow points and one dart point), one bone tool,

18 shell beads, and two modified shell fragments. The ethnohistoric

information establishing the relationship between these tribes and the

Native American human remains and associated funerary objects consists

of ethnographies, language studies, Spanish mission records, oral

interviews, and other sources (Earle 1997). No unassociated funerary

objects, sacred objects, or objects of cultural patrimony were

identified in the collection.

In 1972, one human cranial bone fragment representing one

individual was recovered from the surface during legally authorized

excavations at the CA-LAN-1296 (AVAS-1; EAFB-1000) site by the Antelope

Valley Archaeological Society (AVAS)(EAFB Historic Preservation Office

file 72-A). No consultation was done at the time of the discovery of

the cranial bone fragment. The cranial bone fragment (ISOCAT

2181; AVAS 1-38a) appears to have been part of a cremation interment.

No associated funerary objects were found with the cranial bone

fragment.

In 1988, Regional Environmental Consultants (RECON) conducted

legally authorized test excavations at CA-LAN-1296 and recovered human

bone representing three individuals (Hector et al. 1988). The first

individual is represented by 18 unidentified human bone fragments

(RECON CAT# 163-119a) that were surface collected from a probable

cremation interment in Unit 12 (Locus E). The artifacts found in

association with the 18 human bone fragments consist of five Olivella

sp. shell beads (RECON CAT 163-118, surface) and one Haliotis

sp. shell fragment (RECON CAT 163-119d, surface). On Edwards

AFB, Olivella sp. shell beads and Haliotis sp.shell generally date to

the Gypsum through Late Periods (2000 B.C.-A.D. 1770). The second

individual is represented by 180 human bone fragments that were surface

collected from a probable cremation interment in Unit 18 (Locus E). The

human bone fragments consist of an orbit fragment, distal metacarpal

fragment (RECON CAT 163-196a), and 178 unidentified bone

fragments (RECON CAT 163-196b-d). The artifacts found in

association with the 180 human bone fragments include: one unidentified

shell fragment (RECON CAT 163-196f, surface); 12 unidentified

shell beads (RECON CAT 163-197, 0-10 cm); one Humboldt dart

point (RECON CAT 163-199, 0-10 cm); and one Olivella sp. shell

bead (RECON CAT 163-201, 10-20 cm). Humboldt dart points and

Olivella sp. shell beads are diagnostic artifacts of the Gypsum Period

(2000 B.C--A.D. 500). The third individual is represented by one human

cranial bone fragment (RECON CAT 163-231a, 10-20 cm). The

cranial bone fragment was excavated from a probable cremation interment

in Unit 21 (Locus D). No associated funerary objects were found with

the cranial bone fragment.

The estimated date of occupation at the CA-LAN-1296 site is 5000

B.C.-A.D. 1770 based on the presence of Pinto, Gypsum, Saratoga

Springs, and Late Period components (Earle et al. 1997a). Native

Americans were not consulted at the time the human remains were

recovered from the CA-LAN-1296 site. The human remains were not

identified as such until they were examined by Dr. Rose Tyson of the

San Diego Museum of Man during the NAGPRA inventory process. The

cultural affiliation of the human remains can not be positively

determined (Campbell et al. 1997). Ethnohistoric information, however,

indicates that the human remains may be affiliated with one of the five

tribes (Chemehuevi, Kawaiisu, Kitanemuk, Serrano, or Tataviam) who

utilized the region in historic times (Earle 1997). This is supported

by the site's location in the vicinity of historic ``Ap'avutsiviat'' or

Buckhorn Springs (Earle 1997:59).

In November 1985, the Base Historic Preservation Officer (BHPO),

Richard H. Norwood, recovered human bone representing two individuals

(one cremation; one inhumation) during an emergency investigation at

site CA-KER-2060/H (EAFB-617)(EAFB Historic

[[Page 1029]]

Preservation Office files 85-041, 85-0). The first survey of the site

by the BHPO was done in April 1985 prior to the construction of a

sewage treatment pond (Norwood 1985). The remains were not found at

that time. During the construction mechanical grading uncovered the

human bone. The BHPO's emergency investigation of the site involved:

(1) a surface inspection of ``spoil'' piles; (2) excavation of the

inhumation with the assistance of Colonel H.P. Riessen, a US Air Force

Reserve physical anthropologist; and (3) the excavation of seven 1 m x

1 m test units in different areas of the site. At the time the human

remains were collected, consultations were conducted with Native

Americans (Kawaiisu [Lynn Bedabe]) and State and Federal agencies.

These included the: State of California Native American Heritage

Commission (Annette Ospital); State of California Office of Historic

Preservation (Rob Jackson); National Park Service Interagency

Archeological Services (Holly Dunbar); and National Park Service

Archeological Assistance Division (Deborah Katz).

The first individual at the CA-KER-2060/H site is represented by

239 burned human bone from a cremation interment in Units 1, 5, 6, and

7. The cremation was discovered in a 4 m-square area approximately 5 m

west of the inhumation interment described below. The ISOCAT catalog

numbers for the interment include: two burned femur fragments (1639b);

46 unidentified bone fragments (1673); 1 unidentified bone fragment

(1767); two right lower bicuspid fragments (1813, surface); five long

bone fragments, three cranial bone fragments, and small bone fragments

(1662, Unit 1, 10-20 cm); 58 unidentified bone fragments and 23 cranial

bone fragments (including thick parietal bone indicative of

anemia)(1663, Unit 1, 10-20 cm); one tooth fragment, two mandible

fragments, seven unidentified bone fragments (1763, 1763a-c, Unit 1,

20-30 cm); one tooth (1739, Unit 5, 10-20 cm); six tooth fragments

(including one root and one incisor fragment)(1745, Unit 5, 20-30 cm);

one unidentified burned bone (1746, Unit 5, 20-30 cm); one bicuspid

fragment with severe occlusal wear (1748, Unit 5, 30-40 cm); 22 long

bone fragments, one phalange, and eight cranial bone fragments (1756,

Unit 6, 20-30 cm); two tooth fragments (including one bicuspid and one

root) and two bone fragments (1757, Unit 6, 20-30 cm); one burned tooth

fragment (1664, Unit 7, 10-20 cm); two lower bicuspid fragments (1669,

Unit 7, 20-30 cm); one extremely worn right lateral mandibular incisor

(1670, Unit 7, 20-30 cm); left mandibular molar fragments with severe

occlusal wear (1671, Unit 7, 20-30 cm); and one tooth fragment (1672,

Unit 7, 20-30 cm). No artifacts were found in association with the

cremated human bone.

The cremated human bone was examined by Colonel H.P. Riessen in

1985 and Dr. Rose Tyson of the San Diego Museum of Man during the

NAGPRA inventory process. Reissen's analysis found severe wear present

on the occlusal surfaces of the teeth, but no evidence of caries or

abscesses (1985:14-16). All sutures on the skull fragments are closed,

and are characteristic of a more mature individual. The severe occlusal

wear, closed sutures, and robustness of the bone indicate the

individual was a 30 or so year old male with possible anemia.

The second individual at CA-KER-2060/H consists of unburned cranial

and postcranial bone from an inhumation interment approximately 5 m

east of the cremation described above (Riessen 1985; Norwood 1985,

1987). The inhumation did not evidence a burial pit, but it appeared

that the grave had been dug to the level of the caliche. Riessen

(1985:3) describes the burial as lying in an extended position, face

upward with a northwest-southeast orientation; head oriented to the

northwest. The ISOCAT catalog numbers for the inhumation include: one

tibia fragment (1639a); post-cranial bone (1640); and rib fragment

(4279). Three artifacts were found in association with the inhumation,

and include two Cottonwood Triangular arrow points (ISOCAT

1481, translucent white chalcedony; ISOCAT 1482, red and white

chalcedony) and one bone tool (ISOCAT 1483).

Riessen (1985:13) analyzed the bone from the inhumation in 1985,

and concluded that the individual was probably a 32 or so year old

male, 5 foot 7 inches in height, who showed no gross evidence of trauma

or pathology. At first it was not clear whether the well preserved

unburned bone in the inhumation represented a Native American or

Euroamerican burial. The platymeric index of the individual's femur,

for example, is 84.4, a value close to that of English populations and

higher than the mean (74) for Native Americans (Riessen 1985:14). Other

indices such as the index of curvature (1.0) and index of torsion

(21.45), however, are closer to the mean values for Native American

populations. Based on this information and associated Cottonwood

Triangular arrow points, one of which was found in close proximity to

the individual's left arm, the inhumation appears to be a Native

American burial dating to the Saratoga Springs or Late Periods (A.D.

500-1770).

The estimated date of occupation at the CA-LAN-2060/H site is A.D.

500-1770. This is primarily based on the presence of the aforementioned

Cottonwood Triangular arrow points with the inhumation (Earle et al.

1997a). It is not possible to positively determine the cultural

affiliation of the human remains (Campbell et al. 1997). Ethnohistoric

information nevertheless indicates that they are probably affiliated

with one of the five historically-documented tribes (Chemehuevi,

Kawaiisu, Kitanemuk, Serrano, or Tataviam) in the region (Earle 1997).

In 1987, the BHPO surface collected a fossilized human molar or

premolar crown fragment at the CA-KER-2241 (EAFB-907) site (EAFB

Historic Preservation Office file 88-A). The discovery of the tooth

(ISOCAT 2286) occurred during legally authorized a Base-wide

inventory of paleontologic resources by the San Bernardino County

Museum (Reynolds 1988:76c, Rochez Ridge paleontological complex). The

tooth was found in Locus 4 in the proximity of two chert flakes. The

type of interment that the tooth may have been part of is unknown.

Due to the lack of diagnostic artifacts, no determination has been

made on the CA-LAN-2241 site's estimated date of occupation. The

chronological relationship of the tooth to the site's late Pleistocene

paleontological finds is unknown. The cultural affiliation of the human

remains also can not be positively determined (Campbell et al. 1997).

Ethnohistoric information, however, indicates that the tooth may be

affiliated with one of the five tribes (Chemehuevi, Kawaiisu,

Kitanemuk, Serrano, or Tataviam) who were present in the region in

historic times (Earle 1997).

In 1988, RECON conducted legally authorized test excavations at the

CA-LAN-1158 (EAFB-207) site and recovered burned human bone

representing one cremated individual (EAFB Historic Preservation Office

file 88-E). Native Americans were not consulted at the time the human

remains were recovered from the CA-LAN-1158 site. The bone was not

identified until they were examined by Dr. Rose Tyson of the San Diego

Museum of Man during the NAGPRA inventory process. The individual is

represented by a left distal fibula fragment and three probable cranial

bone fragments (RECON CAT 163-565a). The human bone was

recovered

[[Page 1030]]

from a cremation interment in Unit 46 (Locus B)(Hector et al. 1988:27).

The estimated date of occupation at the CA-LAN-1158 site is 2000

B.C.-A.D. 1770 or the Gypsum through Late Periods. This is based on the

presence of Cottonwood Triangular arrow points, Olivella sp. shell

beads, and Haliotis sp. shell elsewhere on the site (Earle et al.

1997a). The cultural affiliation of the human remains can not be

positively determined (Campbell et al. 1997). Ethnohistoric

information, however, indicates that the cremation internment is

probably affiliated with one of the five tribes (Chemehuevi, Kawaiisu,

Kitanemuk, Serrano, or Tataviam) who utilized the region in historic

times (Earle 1997).

In 1990, the BHPO surface collected one burned human tooth

representing one individual at the CA-KER-796 (EAFB-199; AVAS-40) site

(EAFB Historic Preservation Office file 90a-Jud). No Native Americans

were consulted at the time the tooth was discovered. The tooth was not

identified as a human remain until it was examined by Dr. Rose Tyson of

the San Diego Museum of Man during the NAGPRA inventory process. The

type of interment that the tooth came from is unknown although it may

have been part of a cremation. The tooth (ISOCAT 4672) is a

probable canine with severe occlusal wear, exposed pulp cavity, and

secondary dentine formation. Two small areas of enamel are also visible

at the root juncture on the lingual and buccal surfaces of the tooth.

No determination has been made on the estimated date of occupation

of the CA- KER-796 site. The cultural affiliation of the tooth also can

not be positively determined (Campbell et al. 1997). Ethnohistoric

information, however, indicates that the tooth may be affiliated with

one of the five tribes (Chemehuevi, Kawaiisu, Kitanemuk, Serrano, or

Tataviam) who utilized the region in historic times (Earle 1997).

The ethnohistoric information establishing the relationship between

these tribes and the Native American human remains and associated

funerary objects consists of ethnographies, language studies, Spanish

mission records, oral interviews, and other sources (Earle 1997).

Based on the above mentioned information, officials of the Air

Force Flight Test Center have determined that, pursuant to 43 CFR 10.2

(d)(1), the human remains listed above represent the physical remains

of nine individuals of Native American ancestry. Officials of the Air

Force Flight Test Center have also determined that, pursuant to 43 CFR

10.2 (d)(2), the 24 objects listed above are reasonably believed to

have been placed with or near individual human remains at the time of

death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony. Lastly, officials

of the Air Force Flight Test Center have determined that, pursuant to

43 CFR 10.2 (e), there is a relationship of shared group identity which

can be reasonably traced between these Native American human remains

and associated funerary objects and the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the

Chemehuevi Reservation, the San Manuel Band of Serrano Mission Indians

of the San Manual Reservation, the Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission

Indians of the Morongo Reservation, and the Colorado River Indian

Tribes of the Colorado River Indian Reservation.

This notice has been sent to officials of the Chemehuevi Indian

Tribe of the Chemehuevi Reservation, the San Manuel Band of Serrano

Mission Indians of the San Manual Reservation, the Morongo Band of

Cahuilla Mission Indians of the Morongo Reservation, and the Colorado

River Indian Tribes of the Colorado River Indian Reservation.

Representatives of any other Indian tribe that believes itself to be

culturally affiliated with these human remains and associated funerary

objects should contact David N. Fuerst or Richard H. Norwood, Air Force

Flight Test Center Environmental Management (AFFTC/EM) 5 E. Popson

Avenue, Building 2650A, Edwards AFB, CA 93524-1130; telephone: (805)

277-6295, before February 8, 1999. Repatriation of the human remains

and associated funerary objects to the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the

Chemehuevi Reservation, the San Manuel Band of Serrano Mission Indians

of the San Manual Reservation, the Morongo Band of Cahuilla Mission

Indians of the Morongo Reservation, and the Colorado River Indian

Tribes of the Colorado River Indian Reservation may begin after that

date if no additional claimants come forward.

The National Park Service is not responsible for the contents of or

determinations within this notice.

Dated: December 8, 1998.

Francis P. McManamon,

Departmental Consulting Archeologist,

Manager, Archeology and Ethnography Program.

[FR Doc. 99-325 Filed 1-6-99; 8:45 am]

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