# Notice of Intended Repatriation: Cincinnati Museum Center, Cincinnati, OH
**AGENCY:**
National Park Service, Interior.
**ACTION:**
Notice.
**SUMMARY:**
In accordance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), the Cincinnati Museum Center intends to repatriate certain cultural items that meet the definition of objects of cultural patrimony 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 Tyler Swinney, Cincinnati Museum Center, 1301 Western Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45203, 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 Cincinnati Museum Center, 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 six cultural items have been requested for repatriation. The six objects of cultural patrimony are five pair of beaded moccasins and one beaded jacket. The moccasins were donated to the museum by Mary L. Melvin and E.V. Clarke and were accessioned in 1993. The jacket was donated to the museum by Mrs. Frederick Shaffer and was accessioned in 1961. The Cincinnati Museum Center has no records indicating that these cultural items were exposed to any hazardous substances while in the stewardship of the Museum.
Through consultation, it has been determined that floral beadwork designs are characteristic of the `Santee Floral' style and date to between ca. 1860 and 1900. Santee Floral is a common clothing decoration for the Mdewakanton and is central to the ongoing cultural identity of the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe.
**Determinations**
The Cincinnati Museum Center has determined that:
• The six objects of cultural patrimony described in this notice have ongoing historical, traditional, or cultural importance central to the Native American group, including any constituent sub-group (such as a band, clan, lineage, ceremonial society, or other subdivision), according to the Native American traditional knowledge of an Indian Tribe or Native Hawaiian organization.
• There is a connection between the cultural items described in this notice and the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe of South Dakota.
**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 Cincinnati Museum Center 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 Cincinnati Museum Center 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.