National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers

05/23/2026

In July, Edward DuBois Ragan, THPO for the Rappahannock Tribe, will participate in a panel at Jamestown Settlement “drawing on traditional ecological knowledge alongside military history, environmental and archaeological evidence, and both traditional and non-traditional documents to highlight the Indigenous perspectives of what is now known as Bacon’s Rebellion.”

Rarely acknowledged in historical narratives, Virginia’s Indigenous nations shaped American history in countless ways, including the events surrounding Nathaniel Bacon’s 1676 insurrection. Our panel brings together the project team, drawing on traditional ecological knowledge alongside military ...

05/22/2026

Ho-Chunk Nation THPO Bill Quackenbush called canoes found at the bottom of Lake Mendota dating back thousands of years “a teaching tool. According to the tribe’s oral history, Ho-Chunk people have lived in the Four Lakes region of Greater Madison — called Teejop in Ho-Chunk — since time immemorial. And, despite forced removal campaigns by the federal government, Quackenbush said the Ho-Chunk people have maintained their connection to the area’s land and waters. The canoes, he said, are a physical reminder of that continuity. ‘Time and time again, we build dugout canoes and bring ourselves back over here,’ Quackenbush said. ‘Or else I wouldn’t even be here today.’”

For thousands of years, a cluster of wooden canoes has lain dormant under Madison’s Lake Mendota. Now, thanks to the work of Wisconsin scientists, those ancient vessels are starting to reveal their secrets.

05/22/2026

In northern Michigan, Corey Wells, THPO for the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, was working with local officials after human remains were uncovered during a home excavation. Wells “stated that the investigation into the possible remains is ongoing with the Medical Examiner, homeowner and Sheriff’s Department. If the remains are confirmed to be ancestral, they will be repatriated and reburied according to tribal customs.”

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the discovery, which included a femur and a human skull.The bones were found by an excavation crew lifting a home’s foundation on South Star Lake Drive on Tuesday afternoon.

05/22/2026

Earlier this week, NATHPO Executive Director for Legislative Affairs & Strategic Partnerships Dr. Valerie Grussing provided comment at the Interior Department’s session on the Tribal Interior Budget Council (TIBC). Valerie talked about the need for the TIBC to ensure Tribal Nations have the ability to effectively engage in the Department's budget process. Doing so would help increase the strength of Tribal communities and ultimately improve the protection and preservation of cultural resources and sacred places. The written comments NATHPO submitted last month is linked in the comments.

05/21/2026

On this National Native Nonprofit Day, NATHPO is grateful to the individuals, Tribal Nations, foundations, businesses, and fellow non-profit organizations who have supported us since our founding in 1998. We could not perform the work of supporting Tribal Nations and their THPOs laboring to protect sacred places and cultural resources around the country without you. As we continue to grow this organization in both size and scope, we are honored by the ongoing support we have and continue to receive.

If you would like to support our work empowering Tribal preservation leaders to protect culturally important places that perpetuate Native identity, resilience, and cultural endurance, please visit our website.

The National Association of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that relies upon support and partnerships. Help NATHPO elevate Tribal voices in cultural and historic preservation to protect Native places with a tax-deductible donation. Corporate Matching Opport...

05/21/2026

Earlier this month, Meskwaki Historic Preservation Director Jonathan Buffalo announced, “History was quietly made on April 28 with the largest mass return to date of Meskwaki objects from a single institution: over 200 items came home in a single day. This marks the first time that a collection came back as a single group. Known as the ‘Mary Alicia Owen Collection,’ these items had been housed at the Missouri State Museum in Jefferson City.”

MESKWAKI SETTLEMENT — History was quietly made on April 28 with the largest mass return to date of Meskwaki objects from a single institution: over 200 items came home in a single day. This marks the first time that a collection came back as a single group. Known as the “Mary Alicia Owen Collect...

05/21/2026

HAPPENING THIS AFTERNOON: May THPO Medicine Circle.

Today at 3 PM Eastern Time, NATHPO will host our next THPO Medicine Circle. Details and registration information are at the link below.

(As a reminder, these THPO Medicine Circles, as well as our Policy Forums, are intended for THPOs and THPO staff only.)

THPO Medicine Circle: THPOs supporting THPOs through hard times, heavy topics, and strain (Recurring) PLEASE NOTE:This event and all events in this series are open to only THPO & THPO staff. We appreciate others are interested in this topic, but this is a space for THPOs. THPOs face many heav...

05/21/2026

Earlier this month, NATHPO Executive Director for Legislative Affairs & Strategic Partnerships Dr. Valerie Grussing had the chance to travel to Montana to visit Dyan Youpee, THPO for the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, who was the 2023 recipient of NATHPO's Award for Excellence in Tribel Historic Preservation. There, Valerie was able to visit Dyan’s offices and learn more about the work she her colleagues do every day to protect their Tribal Nation’s sacred places and cultural resources. Team NATHPO always appreciates the chance to visit THPOs, and we look forward to finding more opportunities to see firsthand the work they are doing all around the country.

05/20/2026

150 years after the Grant Administration “drew lines across the tribe’s ancient homeland and designated parts of it a reservation,” the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians details “the durational struggle for sovereignty and stewardship of its ancestral lands.” For the Agua Caliente, as with many other Tribal Nations, those efforts include the work of cultural preservation and the establishment of a THPO.

“In addition to stewarding Tahquitz Canyon and the Indian Canyons in Palm Springs, the tribe co-manages the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, integrating traditional ecological knowledge with federal conservation efforts. The Tribal Historic Preservation Office reviews development plans to protect cultural sites and preserve artifacts. In 2023, the Agua Caliente Cultural Plaza opened on the site of Séc-he. Anchored by the Agua Caliente Cultural Museum and The Spa at Séc-he, the project launched one of the most significant Indigenous archaeological undertakings in the country. Thousands of artifacts were carefully documented and preserved during construction, while carbon dating affirmed the tribe’s presence here for at least 8,000 years. The plaza represents both continuity and control, with cultural interpretation led by the tribe on sovereign land.”

The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians looks back on the durational struggle for sovereignty and stewardship of its ancestral lands.

05/20/2026

Powerful words from Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. of the Cherokee Nation about their work to preserve the homes of former Principal Chiefs J.B. Milam and Tom Buffington:

“Collectively, all these efforts are about more than preservation. They are about continuity and a belief that the story of Cherokee leadership belongs to the Cherokee people. What we are doing today will help future generations of Cherokees fully inherit their history. As Cherokees, our future depends on how we carry forward the lessons of the past. Protecting our critical records and honoring places like the Milam and Buffington homes means we are doing exactly that: carrying the Cherokee story forward, together.”

As Cherokees, our future depends on how we carry forward the lessons of the past.

05/20/2026

Last month, the community of THPOs lost one of their own when Ione Quigley, THPO for the Rosebud Sioux Tribe, passed away.

Ione dedicated herself to preserving her people’s culture, language, and lifeways. As a THPO, Ione worked tirelessly to protect sacred places and to preserve cultural resources. She also labored to bring home ancestors who had been taken from their homelands, as well as their belongings. In 2021, Ione succeeded in bringing home the remains of nine children who were taken to Carlisle Indian Industrial School from the reservation more than a century before. July 14 is now a holiday known as Tiyate Glipi Anpetu, or “They are back to their homelands day,” to honor the return of these nine children.

Ione also had a profound effect on the larger community of THPOs. In addition to being a good partner in the shared work of protecting sacred places and cultural preservation, Ione was a mentor and teacher to many THPOs from around the country. She was a guide for her fellow THPOs and a rock on whom they could lean, and the mark she left on this community is one that will last for many years to come.

In addition to her work as a THPO, Ione spent decades working to preserve the Lakota language and served as Professor of Lakota Studies at Sinte Gleska University. There, she not only taught the Lakota language, but also, in the words of her former colleagues, “passed on a worldview. Her classroom was a place of cultural revitalization, where the heart of the Lakota people lived through its language.” Ione also worked to preserve her people's culture by advocating for food sovereignty and working to restore traditional food sources and practices, yet another area in which she was instrumental in mentoring and supporting advocates from other Tribal Nations.

Ione was a warrior on behalf of her people as well as a teacher. Her colleagues at the Rosebud Sioux Tribe’s WIC Office put it best when they said, “She walked in a way our ancestors taught us, with Wolakota, Wowahunhan, and a strong spirit of care for others. Her impact will continue to live on in every person she taught, encouraged, and uplifted. “

NATHPO gives thanks for the life and work of Ione Quigley, and we join countless others in extending our heartfelt condolences to Ione’s family, colleagues, and community.