A Lock Of Sitting Bull’s Hair Was Tested More Than A Century Later – And The DNA Confirmed A Family Claim

The Smithsonian Institution is governed by a separate but parallel statute — the National Museum of the American Indian Act of 1989, which established specific repatriation obligations for the Smithsonian — rather than NAGPRA directly.

But the principles were similar, and the effect for the Sitting Bull hair and leggings was that the Smithsonian was required to investigate how those objects had been acquired and whether the acquisition had been legitimate.

The Smithsonian’s investigation concluded that the taking of Sitting Bull’s hair and leggings had lacked proper authority.

That conclusion led directly to the repatriation.

The Family That Never Forgot