[meteorite-list] New York Times Correction

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:54:04 2004
Message-ID: <200202141822.KAA08549_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

> I do not want to upset anyone here but I am confused on this Willamette
> issue.
>
> "The American Museum of Natural History bought it in 1906." I assume from
> the Indians.

Here's some background information on the Willamette meteorite.
There was a lawsuit in 1903-1904
on the ownership of the meteorite between Ellis Hughes and Oregon Iron and Steel
Company. Hughes had apparently found the meteorite on the property of the Steel
Company in 1902, moved it to his property, and then claimed ownership. During the
trial, the Clackamas Indians testified on Hughes' behalf that they
had used the meteorite as a sacred stone 30 year prior, but it was now an
abandoned Indian relic. It would be interesting to get the court transcript
from this trial to see exactly what the Indians said. The meteorite was awarded
by the court to the steel company. The meteorite was then sold to a Mrs. William
Dodge from New York for $26,000. Mrs. Dodge then donated the meteorite to the
American Museum of Natural History in New York. There was a stipluation in the
donation that the meteorite was to remain intact as a single body. The meteorite
has been on display at the museum since 1906, and things were quiet for over 90 years.

Then the late 1990's, the museum went through a major upgrade including the construction
of the $210 million Rose Center, with the Willamette meteorite as the main centerpiece. This
received a lot of publicity. When the Indians in Oregon head about it, and also found
out the meteorite was worth a lot of money, they then claimed the meteorite was
a sacred object to their tribe, and that it should be returned to them. The Indians filed a
lawsuit in 2000, and filed the claim under a federal law known at the Native American Graves
Protection and Repatriation Act, also known as NAGPRA. NAGPRA was passed around 1990 and was
to protect and preserve Indian artifacts. There was some debate whether this law
applied to the meteorite, and whether it could be applied retroactively. The lawsuit
was eventually dropped and the matter settled out-of-court. As part of the settlement, the
Indians were allowed access to the meteorite in New York for annual ceremonial visits.

There the matter rested, until the recent Tuscon auction, where the Indians objected
to the sale of pieces from the Willamette meteorite.

Ron Baalke
 
Received on Thu 14 Feb 2002 01:22:50 PM PST