Native American Remains Found at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
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Quitobaquito Springs, a rare Sonoran Desert oasis imperiled by border wall construction, is located within 200 feet of the U.S.-Mexico border in Organ Pipe National Monument outside Ajo, Arizona.
Tribal Leaders Warned Border Wall Construction Would Disturb Native American Remains. They Were Right.
Contractors building a second border wall along the southern boundary of Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Arizona have bulldozed a path for equipment, uprooting plants and unearthing human remains.
by Ryan Devereaux
November 2, 2026, 5:00 am
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Lorraine Eiler stood in the blazing August sun, surrounded by reporters, to offer a warning. The Trump administration was racing to erect a second border wall across Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, southwest of Tucson. If the bulldozers came, she said, they were bound to disturb the final resting places of her family and Hia-Ced O’odham tribal ancestors.
“People used to live here,” the 89-year-old said.
Fifteen days later, her fears were realized.
ProPublica has confirmed that Native American remains were unearthed in Organ Pipe amid soil overturned by border wall contractors.
The discovery, unreported until now, was made on Sept. 8, the National Park Service said in a statement. “Following established protocols, the University of Arizona conducted an assessment and confirmed that the remains are human and align with tribal cremation practices,” the agency said.
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act governs the steps agencies must take following an inadvertent discovery of Native American remains on federal land. Those steps include halting any activity that contributed to the discovery until tribal communities are consulted.
“The National Park Service is committed to respecting tribal rights and traditions,” the agency went on to say, adding that it was “working diligently to identify the culturally affiliated tribe and ensure the respectful return of the remains, so the tribe may observe their religious and cultural practices.”
Eiler was alerted to the discovery by a cultural affairs specialist with the Tohono O’odham Nation, a larger tribe whose reservation is east of Organ Pipe, and later by the Organ Pipe superintendent’s office. Her family discussed what to do next. Ultimately, they decided to hold off on reburying the newly unearthed remains until construction in the area was completed.