Legislation pending in Congress would transfer an abandoned lighthouse to the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians of Oregon.

The Cape Arago lighthouse sits on a small island where a tribal ancestral village and burial grounds are located. The lighthouse is no longer publicly accessible.

Provisions to return the land to the tribe and place it in trust have been included in S.1892, the Coast Guard Authorization Act for fiscal year 2008. But stand-alone legislation has been introduced in the House and Senate.

Get the Story:
Tribes may land island, lighthouse on former burial site (The Eugene Register-Guard 6/27)
Cape Arago Might Be Returned to Native American Control (KTVI 6/26)