Archives of Native Presence: Land Tenure Research on the Grand Ronde Reservation

Abstract

Under the banner of indigenous and collaborative archaeologies, heritage professionals and indigenous peoples have developed new forms of scholarly practice. This work has begun to rectify the discipline's historical marginalization of indigenous groups but remains skewed toward academic projects. Less attention has been paid to the hundreds of Tribal Historic Preservation Offices within tribal nations. This article argues that tribal historic preservation provides needed insight to heritage managers of all stripes. Using the Grand Ronde Land Tenure Project as a case study, I discuss how tribally-driven archival research fosters new accounts of Native history and enhances tribes' capacity to care for cultural resources.