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| Cherokee Nation Tribal Historic Preservation Office | |
|---|---|
| Name | Cherokee Nation Tribal Historic Preservation Office |
| Type | Tribal historic preservation office |
| Headquarters | Tahlequah, Oklahoma |
| Established | 1990s |
| Leader title | Tribal Historic Preservation Officer |
| Parent organization | Cherokee Nation |
Cherokee Nation Tribal Historic Preservation Office
The Cherokee Nation Tribal Historic Preservation Office serves as the primary agency within the Cherokee Nation responsible for identifying, documenting, protecting, and interpreting Cherokee cultural resources across historic and contemporary landscapes. It operates at the intersection of federal statutes such as the National Historic Preservation Act, tribal sovereign authorities like the Cherokee Nation government, and international norms exemplified by the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. The office engages with museums, archaeological laboratories, and descendant communities to steward material culture, sacred sites, and archival collections.
The office traces its origins to tribal initiatives in the late 20th century responding to federal policy shifts embodied in the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and amendments in the 1990s that expanded Tribal Historic Preservation Officer roles. Early foundations were influenced by landmark events including the centennial and bicentennial commemorations of the Trail of Tears removals and legal precedents such as Employment Division v. Smith and tribal assertions emerging after the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act. Collaborative projects with institutions like the Smithsonian Institution, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, and regional museums fostered capacity for cultural resource inventories and tribal nominations to the National Register of Historic Places.
The office’s mission emphasizes protection of Cherokee tangible and intangible heritage under tribal law, federal statutes, and treaties including provisions rooted in the Treaty of New Echota and other nineteenth-century accords. Legal authority flows from the Cherokee Nation’s tribal code and the federally recognized role of Tribal Historic Preservation Officers under the National Historic Preservation Act § 101(d)(2), enabling consultation on undertakings subject to Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act review. The office also implements obligations under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act and engages with administrative decisions under the National Environmental Policy Act when cultural resources may be affected.
Structured within the Cherokee Nation’s executive portfolio, the office is led by a Tribal Historic Preservation Officer who coordinates archaeologists, historians, cultural resource managers, and outreach specialists. Staff specialties include field archaeology with ties to the Society for American Archaeology, archival management connected to the Library of Congress systems, and collections care influenced by standards from the American Alliance of Museums. Collaborative positions have included curators from the Gilcrease Museum, preservation architects trained in the National Trust for Historic Preservation methodologies, and liaison roles linking to tribal programs such as those addressing language revitalization with the Jacobs Fund and Cherokee language initiatives.
Key programs encompass cultural landscape surveys modeled on practices used for the Blue Ridge Parkway and the New Orleans Historic Districts, historic property nominations to the National Register of Historic Places, and stewardship of archaeological sites comparable to efforts at the Moundville Archaeological Park. The office administers inventories, predictive modeling influenced by the Society for American Archaeology guidelines, and emergency response protocols paralleling those of the Federal Emergency Management Agency for heritage at risk. Grant programs leverage funding mechanisms from the National Park Service Tribal Historic Preservation Grants and partnerships with philanthropic entities like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Field projects include survey and stabilization of burial sites subject to Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act processes, conservation treatments for collections comparable to those undertaken at the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian, and rehabilitation of historic properties in Tahlequah akin to preservation efforts in the Savannah Historic District. Archaeological investigations collaborate with universities such as the University of Oklahoma and University of Tulsa archaeology departments, and with state agencies like the Oklahoma Historical Society to document precontact and historic-period Cherokee sites. The office applies best practices drawn from the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties in restoration and adaptive reuse projects.
The office sustains partnerships with federal agencies including the National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration for cultural resource protection in coastal and riparian zones. Academic collaborations span institutions like Harvard University, University of California, Berkeley, and Field Museum researchers for multidisciplinary studies. Museum and repatriation networks involve the American Museum of Natural History, regional tribal nations such as the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, and international contacts through the International Council on Monuments and Sites.
Public programs include exhibits, school curricula coordinated with the Oklahoma State Department of Education, language and cultural workshops connected to Cherokee immersion schools, and oral history projects akin to collections at the Library of Congress American Folklife Center. The office administers repatriation under NAGPRA with compliance processes interfacing with museums such as the Peabody Museum and the Denver Art Museum; it coordinates funerary and sacred object consultations and returns to descendant communities. Outreach leverages media collaborations with public broadcasters like National Public Radio and documentary partnerships exemplified by work with PBS.