An Historic Burial from the Southern Plains of Kansas

An historic burial was discovered and non-professionally excavated in Kiowa County, Kansas, in 1940. The remains include minimal skeletal material and numerous grave goods and were donated to the Kansas State Historical Society in 1987. Analysis of the skeletal remains indicate this was the grave of a 19 to 23 year old male, possibly a Native American. Analysis of grave accompaniments suggests that this individual was a Native American that probably died during the late 1860s. The historical context indicates he was probably a member of one of several groups of Southern Plains Native Americans that frequented the area during this period, and in particular Kiowa, Kiowa-Apache, Comanche, Cheyenne, or Arapaho. lnfonnation from the grave of this individual helps to document the last expression of a nomadic Native American lifestyle on the Kansas Plains.