# Notice of Intended Repatriation: Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Jackson, MS
**AGENCY:**
National Park Service, Interior.
**ACTION:**
Notice.
**SUMMARY:**
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) 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.
**DATES:**
Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice may occur on or after March 13, 2026.
**ADDRESSES:**
Send additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural items in this notice to Jaquelin Padilla, NAGPRA Coordinator, Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Historic Preservation Division, 100 South State Street, P.O. Box 571, Jackson, MS 3205, 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 Mississippi Department of Archives and History, and additional information on the determinations in this notice, including the results of consultation, can be found in the summary or related records. The National Park Service is not responsible for the determinations in this notice.
**Abstract of Information Available**
A total of four lots of cultural items have been requested for repatriation from 22CS502 (Owl Creek/Shiloh Church Mounds). The four lots of cultural objects consist of one lot lithics, one lot Native American ceramics, one lot faunal remains, and one lot organic materials.
The site 22CS502 was excavated by MDAH archaeologist Moreau B. Chambers in 1935. The collection from this excavation was curated at Louisiana State University and transferred to MDAH in 2005.
Through Tribal consultation, these four lots of unassociated funerary objects were identified as culturally affiliated with The Chickasaw Nation. To our knowledge, no potentially hazardous substances were used to treat any of the unassociated funerary objects.
**Determinations**
The Mississippi Department of Archives and History has determined that:
• The four lots of unassociated funerary objects described in this notice are reasonably believed to have been placed intentionally with or near human remains, and are connected, either at the time of death or later as part of the death rite or ceremony of a Native American culture according to the Native American traditional knowledge of a lineal descendant, Indian Tribe, or Native Hawaiian organization. The unassociated funerary objects have been identified by a preponderance of the evidence as related to human remains, specific individuals, or families, or removed from a specific burial site or burial area of an individual or individuals with cultural affiliation to an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
• There is a connection between the cultural items described in this notice and The Chickasaw Nation.
**Requests for Repatriation**
Additional, written requests for repatriation of the cultural items in this notice must be sent to the authorized representative identified in this notice under *ADDRESSES* . Requests for repatriation may be submitted by 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 a culturally affiliated Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
Repatriation of the cultural items in this notice to a requestor may occur on or after March 13, 2026. If competing requests for repatriation are received, the Mississippi Department of Archives and History must determine the most appropriate requestor prior to repatriation. Requests for joint repatriation of the cultural items are considered a single request and not competing requests. The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is responsible for sending a copy of this notice to the Indian Tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations identified in this notice and to any other consulting parties.
*Authority:* Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 25 U.S.C. 3004 and the implementing regulations, 43 CFR 10.9.
Dated: February 4, 2026.
Melanie O'Brien,
Manager, National NAGPRA Program.