Scotland to return remains of now-extinct Newfoundland First Nation
Posted Jan 21, 2019 12:14:08 PM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — The remains of two people from a now-extinct Newfoundland First Nation will be returned to Canada after being held in Scotland for almost two centuries.
National Museums Scotland announced Monday that the remains of Beothuk people Nonosabasut and Demasduit will be transferred to the Canadian Museum of History in Ottawa.
The decision follows a legal request from the Canadian government received in early 2018.
Earlier repatriation efforts were spearheaded by Chief Mi’sel Joe of the Miawpukek First Nation with backing of other Indigenous leaders and government leaders.
The last known Beothuk woman, Shawnadithit, died in St. John’s in 1829.
A Newfoundland man discovered the remains of Nonosabasut and Demasduit in 1828 and sent them overseas to his Scottish mentor, where they have remained ever since.
The Canadian Press
