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Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding Proposed Finding The Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) TABLE OF CONTENTS ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................... ii INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................................................1 Regulatory Procedures .............................................................................................1 Administrative History.............................................................................................2 The Historical Indian Tribe ......................................................................................4 CONCLUSIONS UNDER THE CRITERIA (25 CFR 83.7) ..............................................9 Criterion 83.7(a) .....................................................................................................11 Criterion 83.7(b) ....................................................................................................21 Criterion 83.7(c) .....................................................................................................57 Criterion 83.7(d) ...................................................................................................81 Criterion 83.7(e) ....................................................................................................87 Criterion 83.7(f) ...................................................................................................107 Criterion 83.7(g) ..................................................................................................109 SUPPORTING MATERIALS FIGURES 1. Map of Virginia with Counties ............................................................................. iii 2. Portion of King William County Map Showing Pamunkey Reservation ...............v BIBLIOGRAPHY ....................................................................................... Bibliography - 1 APPENDICES A. Historical Pamunkey Indians ................................................................ Appendix - 1 B. 1901 Pamunkey Census by James Mooney .......................................... Appendix - 5 C. Analysis of Petitioner’s “40 Direct Lineal Ancestors” ......................... Appendix - 7 i Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS AS-IA Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs BIA Bureau of Indian Affairs CFR Code of Federal Regulations DOI Department of the Interior (Department) FD Final Determination FAIR Federal Acknowledgment Information Resource FR Federal Register FTM Family Tree MakerTM GLO General Land Office IBIA Interior Board of Indian Appeals NARF Native American Rights Fund OD Obvious Deficiency Letter OFA Office of Federal Acknowledgment PF Proposed Finding PIT Pamunkey Indian Tribe SCC Southern Claims Commission TA Technical Assistance U. S. United States VA Virginia ii Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding King William County New Kent County Petersburg Petersburg Richmond Figure 1: Map of Virginia with Counties. Petitioner is located in King William County. Source: quickfacts.census.gov iii Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding This page is intentionally left blank. iv Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding Town of West Point Pamunkey Indian Reservation Figure 2a: Portion of King William County Map Showing Pamunkey Reservation Source: Petitioner Submission 2010, Appendix 1, Part A, Map 39 v Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding This page is intentionally left blank. vi Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding Introduction INTRODUCTION The Office of the Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs (AS-IA) within the Department of the Interior (Department) issues this proposed finding (PF) in response to the petition the Department received from the group known as the Pamunkey Indian Tribe (PIT), Petitioner #323, headquartered in King William County, Virginia. The petitioner seeks Federal acknowledgment as an Indian tribe under Part 83 of Title 25 of the Code of Federal Regulations (25 CFR Part 83), “Procedures for Establishing that an American Indian Group Exists as an Indian Tribe.” The evidence the petitioner submitted and the Department staff obtained through its review suggests that the petitioner meets all of the seven mandatory criteria for Federal acknowledgment: criteria 83.7(a), 83.7(b), 83.7(c), 83.7(d), 83.7(e), 83.7(f), and 83.7(g). An explanation of the Department’s evaluation of each criterion is presented in full in sections that follow this introduction. In accordance with the regulations set forth in 25 CFR 83.7, meeting all seven criteria requires a determination that the petitioning group is an Indian tribe within the meaning of Federal law. In this case, the petitioner meets all seven mandatory criteria. Therefore, the Department proposes to acknowledge the petitioner as an Indian tribe under Federal law. Regulatory Procedures The acknowledgment regulations under 25 CFR Part 83 establish the procedures by which a group may seek Federal acknowledgment as an Indian tribe, establishing a government-to- government relationship with the United States. To be entitled to such a political relationship with the United States, the petitioner must submit evidence documenting that the group meets the seven mandatory criteria set forth in section 83.7 of the regulations. Failure to meet any one of the mandatory criteria will result in a determination that the group does not exist as an Indian tribe within the meaning of Federal law. The time periods for the evaluation of documented petitions are set forth in section 83.10. Publication of the notice of the PF in the Federal Register (FR) initiates a 180-day comment period during which the petitioner, and interested and informed parties, may submit arguments and evidence to support or rebut the evidence used in the PF. Such comments should be submitted in writing to the Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs, 1951 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Mail Stop 34B-SIB, Washington, D.C. 20240, Attention: Office of Federal Acknowledgment. Interested and informed parties must provide copies of their submissions to the petitioner. The regulations at 25 CFR 83.10(k), provide the petitioner a minimum of 60 days to respond to any comments on the PF submitted during the comment period. At the end of this response period for the PF, the Office of Federal Acknowledgment (OFA) shall consult with the petitioner 1 Pamunkey Indian Tribe (Petitioner #323) Proposed Finding Introduction and interested parties to determine an equitable time frame for consideration of written arguments and evidence that are submitted during the comment and response periods. OFA shall notify the petitioner and interested parties of the date such consideration begins. After consideration, the AS-IA shall issue a final determination (FD) regarding the petitioner’s status. The Department shall publish a notice of this FD in the FR. After publication of the notice of the FD, the petitioner or any interested party may file a request for reconsideration with the Interior Board of Indian Appeals (IBIA) under the procedures in section 83.11 of the regulations. A request for reconsideration must be made within 90 days of publication of the notice of the FD. Unless the petitioner or interested party files a request for reconsideration pursuant to section 83.11, the FD will become effective 90 days from its date of publication. Administrative History The petitioner submitted a letter of intent to the AS-IA under the name of the Pamunkey Indian Tribe on June 29, 2009, and the Department designated the group as Petitioner #323. The petitioner submitted a narrative as well as some documents outlined in its narrative, which the Department received on October 14, 2010. The Department conducted an initial review of the petition and provided the petitioner with a technical assistance (TA) review in a letter on April 11, 2011. The petitioner submitted additional materials in response to the TA on December 7, 2011. On July 5, 2011, the petitioner requested consideration for expedited processing under the AS-IA’s notice of “guidance direction” of May 23, 2008 (73 FR 30146). The Department determined the petition was ready for consideration and placed the petitioner on the “Ready, Waiting for Active Consideration list” (Ready list) on January 3, 2012. The Department began review of the petitioner for expedited processing on January 16, 2012, and completed its review on April 20, 2012. Based on this review, OFA found that the petitioner met the requirements for expedited processing and recommended a waiver of the priority provisions of the regulations. On July 20, 2012, the Acting AS-IA found it was in the best interest of the Indians to waive the priority provision as it is anticipated that a waiver under the directive allows more petitioners to be processed during a set time period and ultimately allows the process to move faster for all petitioners. The acting AS-IA waived the priority provision of the regulations and OFA moved the petitioner to the top of the Ready list. The petitioner submitted additional petition documents on March 28, 2012, April 12, 2012, and July 11, 2012. The Department placed the petitioner on active consideration for the PF on August 21, 2012, and received one submission of additional petition documents from the group during the 60 days