It has been one year since my staff and I wrote to Tribal Nations with the difficult news of a collection of hair clippings taken from Indigenous people around the world. The collection was amassed by anthropologist George Edward Woodbury in the early 1930s and donated to the Museum in 1935. Particularly distressing is that approximately 700 clippings came from named children and adults then at U.S. Indian boarding schools. More details of the collection, including historical documentation, can be found on our dedicated Woodbury Collection pages.
Over the last year, the museum has made significant progress in consultation and the return of hair clippings to Tribal Nations and lineal descendants.
In November 2022 and January 2023, we sent information about the collection to Tribal Nations, including lists of the named individuals with their Tribal designation as described in the 1930s. Since then, we have been in active consultation with 165 Tribes as well as lineal descendants. As of the end of October 2023, we have completed consultation with 60 Tribes. So far this has resulted in 24 Federal Register Notices transferring legal control of hair clippings to Tribal Nations and lineal descendants. In addition, seven draft Notices are with National NAGPRA awaiting publication in the Federal Register, and an additional seven Notices are with Tribal Nations for final approval.
We continue to seek guidance from Tribal Nations as we move forward on these returns. We have also been honored that Tribes and families have shared personal memories and histories with us about the individuals whose hair was taken. I am deeply grateful to Tribal representatives and family members for the compassion and patience they have shown our staff as we work to address the colonial legacy of our museum.
November 6, 2023