SEQUIM — They were taken off the North Olympic Peninsula more than 100 years ago, and stored inside a museum 2,957 miles away. But 21 wooden boxes of human remains belonging to the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe have been reburied at the Jamestown Cemetery north of Sequim.
Kathy Duncan, the Jamestown tribe’s cultural resource officer, carried the boxes across the country in her blue Chevrolet SUV.
She and her husband, Brian, did the six-day drive together.
“I wouldn’t think of shipping them,” said Duncan, 60.
After archaeologists collected the remains, circa 1899, they were kept at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City.
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, passed in 1990, facilitates recovery of such remains.
Solidarity among peoples
Under a bright sun Friday, some 30 members of the Lower Elwha Klallam and Port Gamble and Jamestown S’Klallam tribes gathered for a burial that affirmed solidarity among peoples.
The Jamestown tribe’s Elaine Grinnell welcomed the group.
“Listen not only here,” she said, raising a hand to her ear, “but also with your hearts.”
Then Gene Jones stepped forward. He’s a member of the Port Gamble tribe, but he reminded his listeners to not dwell on such things.
“Our people belong together. There is no boundary between us. We are one,” he said.
“This is what I’m trying to teach my children: If people call and tell you, ‘We need help over here,’ go — sometimes just your presence is strength.”
Jones’ father and grandfather taught him “that we all need each other. Sometimes when we’re walking our paths, we feel like we’re all alone. But our people are there, watching how you carry yourself.”
