The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation have been consulting with the Washington Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation as well as the city of Walla Walla since human remains were found at Pioneer Park on Dec. 8.
CTUIR and the Yakama Nation will reinter the remains of their ancestor in a private reburial, according to the CTUIR's Cultural Resources Protection Program.
The remains -- bones found during excavation work for a street improvement project on Whitman Street between Fern Avenue and Division Street -- were determined to belong to a female of Native American origin.
Teara Farrow Ferman, Cultural Resources Protection Program manager with CTUIR, said the entire Walla Walla Valley was used by the tribes and bands of the Weyíiletpuu or Cayuse peoples, Imatalamłáma or Umatilla peoples, and Walúulapam or Walla Walla peoples.
Lands throughout the area were used as camp and village sites, burial sites, and resource gathering areas for raw material such as tules and willows and materials for tools and clothing. This is the location of traditional First Food gathering, hunting, fishing, and ceremonial, trading and gathering places.
Treaty negotiations with all the tribes took place throughout the Valley, where there are travel corridors, horse grazing areas and other historical areas.
The area is predominantly Weyíiletpuu territory, Farrow Ferman said.
"Our tribal elders have told us that our ancestors are buried throughout this region in unmarked burial locations, and it is our responsibility to care for them if they are inadvertently discovered," she said.
Farrow Ferman said CTUIR prioritizes taking care of its ancestors as soon as possible.
"We are currently working through the state process to get our ancestor reinterred," she said.
The reburial will be private among the tribes, Farrow Ferman said, and the resting location will not be disclosed.
Under state law, the location of archaeological sites and Native graves are protected from public disclosure to prevent looting or damage, and tribes can take civil action against anyone who violates the law.
"The public should know that our history is a part of the United States history, and we should all work together to protect our history and our ancestors," Farrow Ferman said.
When nonforensic human remains, Native or not, are found in Washington, the state physical anthropologist notifies any affected tribes, who can opt to consult on the reinterment process and other next steps.
Both CTUIR and the Yakama Nation decided to participate in the consultation process.
Gregg Kiona of Yakama Nation Cultural Resources said there will be a reburial. Kiona also said the city must follow the Washington Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation's recommendations related to the street improvement project.
Farrow Ferman said CTUIR is working with the city's archaeological consultant to develop a work plan to complete the Pioneer Park Pedestrian Improvements and Whitman Street Infrastructure Repair and Replacement Program Project.
City Manager Elizabeth Chamberlain said Wednesday, Jan. 22, that CTUIR shared a list of recommended consultants.
Chamberlain said the state Archaeology Department completed its work and asked the city to secure the site along Whitman Street. She said the city put up fencing around the area.
She also said the agencies are still working through plans for the site and for the project, including whether the pedestrian improvements can continue as planned, or if the work plans need to be adjusted.