National Park Service: More tribes sign historic preservation agreements

Tribal Historic Preservation Officer Staff of the Southern Ute Indian Tribe, from left: Xavier Watts, NAGPRA Technician; Cassandra Atencio, Deputy THPO; Garrett W. Briggs, THPO. Photo courtesy of Lindsay Box, Tribal Council Communications Specialist, Southern Ute Indian Tribe

Seven Tribes sign preservation agreements with the National Park Service

Wednesday, November 24, 2021

Indianz.Com

The following is the text of a November 24, 2021, press release from the National Park Service.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Seven new Tribal Historic Preservation agreements were completed and signed with Tribes in seven states in 2021. The NPS welcomes the following new Tribal Historic Preservation partners:

Cowlitz Indian Tribe, Washington
Ysleta del Sur Pueblo, Texas
Southern Ute Indian Tribe of the Southern Ute Reservation, Colorado
Resighini Rancheria, California
Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, Utah
Santo Domingo Pueblo, New Mexico
Moapa Band of Paiute Indians of the Moapa River Indian Reservation, Nevada

“The National Park Service takes our responsibilities to Tribes seriously,” said NPS Deputy Director Shawn Benge. “I know that developing a tribal historic preservation plan takes a lot of work and coordination and I am pleased to welcome the new Tribal Historic Preservation Offices into the federal preservation community.”

The NPS has the responsibility under the National Historic Preservation Act to administer the Tribal Historic Preservation Program. The program assists Indian tribes in strengthening their historic preservation programs managed through Tribal Historic Preservation Offices (THPO) on tribal lands. Once signed, THPO agreements transfer certain historic preservation responsibilities to Tribes that would otherwise be the responsibility of the state.

The NPS Tribal Historic Preservation Program works with each tribal applicant while they develop their program plan, which may take a year or more. The program also consults with the appropriate State Historic Preservation Office and other tribal and federal preservation partners during the process before accepting the final plan and developing the THPO agreement. There are currently 207 Tribes with signed THPO agreements nationwide.

With 574 federally recognized tribes, continued engagement with Tribes supports many potential new THPO programs. For more information about the Tribal Historic Preservation Program, visit the program website: nps.gov/thpoprogram.

About the National Park Service. More than 20,000 National Park Service employees care for America’s 423 national parks and work with communities across the nation to help preserve local history and create close-to-home recreational opportunities. Learn more at href=https://www.nps.gov/>nps.gov, and on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.