California museum returns massacre remains to Wiyot Tribe

By BRIAN MELLEY
Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The remains of 20 Native Americans massacred in Northern California in 1860 have been returned to their tribe. Officials announced this week that the skeletal remains and artifacts found in the graves were returned last fall to the Wiyot Tribe that lives in the Eureka area. Dozens of children, women and elderly were slain in what’s known as the Indian Island Massacre. The graves of some were discovered in 1953 and the skeletons were taken to the Hearst Museum of Anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley. A tribal officer says the remains will be reunited with their families.