# Notice of Inventory Completion: The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
**AGENCY:**
National Park Service, Interior.
**ACTION:**
Notice.
**SUMMARY:**
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the University of Alabama at Birmingham has completed an inventory of human remains and associated funerary objects and has determined that there is a cultural affiliation between the human remains and associated funerary objects and Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations in this notice.
**DATES:**
Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice may occur on or after December 18, 2025.
**ADDRESSES:**
Send written requests for repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice to Dr. Lauren Downs, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Department of Anthropology, UH 3165, 1720 2nd Avenue South, Birmingham, AL 35294, email *[email protected].*
**SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:**
This notice is published as part of the National Park Service's administrative responsibilities under NAGPRA. The determinations in this notice are the sole responsibility of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and additional information on the determinations in this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in its inventory or related records. The National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.
**Abstract of Information Available**
Human remains representing, at least, three individuals have been identified. The 155 associated funerary objects are 81 faunal bone fragments, including turtle, deer, and unidentified species; 51 lithic flakes; 13 shells or shell fragments; eight pottery sherds; one greenstone flake; and one lot of charcoal. Site 1Sc50 is located in St. Clair County, AL, along the Coosa River and is a large, multi-component village site. The site was excavated by Dr. Roger Nance (Department of Anthropology, the University of Alabama at Birmingham) in 1968-1971 as part of a university-sponsored archaeological field school. Internal records list the site as 1STC100, but this is believed to be a synonym for site 1Sc50. Occupation of the site spans the Archaic, Woodland, and early Protohistoric periods. The burials recovered from the site likely date to the Early to Middle Woodland Period (1000 BC—A.D. 500), possibly the Cedar Bluff phase of the Early Middle Woodland Period (100 BC—A.D. 300). The Cedar Bluff phase is considered a variant of the Tennessee Valley Colbert culture. There is no record of any potentially hazardous substances being used to treat the ancestors or associated belongings.
**Cultural Affiliation**
Based on the information available and the results of consultation, cultural affiliation is reasonably identified by the geographical location or acquisition history of the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice.
**Determinations**
The University of Alabama at Birmingham has determined that:
• The human remains described in this notice represent the physical remains of three individuals of Native American ancestry.
• The 155 objects described in this notice are reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or near individual human remains at the time of death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony.
• There is a connection between the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice and the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas; Poarch Band of Creek Indians; Seminole Tribe of Florida; Shawnee Tribe; The Muscogee (Creek) Nation; and the Thlopthlocco Tribal Town.
**Requests for Repatriation**
Written requests for repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified in this notice under *ADDRESSES* . Requests for repatriation may be submitted by:
1. Any one or more of the Indian Tribes or Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this notice.
2. Any lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization not identified in this notice who shows, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the requestor is a lineal descendant or an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization with cultural affiliation.
Repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects described in this notice to a requestor may occur on or after December 18, 2025. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the University of Alabama at Birmingham must determine the most appropriate requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the human remains and associated funerary objects are considered a single request and not competing requests. The University of Alabama at Birmingham is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this notice and any other consulting parties.
*Authority:* Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 25 U.S.C. 3003, and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.10.
Dated: September 30, 2025.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.