After 9,000 Years, 'Kennewick Man' Remains To Be Laid To Rest

NPR

Published February 8, 2017 at 12:12 PM EST

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In this July 24, 1997 file photo, a plastic casting of the skull from the bones known as Kennewick Man, is seen in Richland, Wash. (Elaine Thompson/AP)

In 1996, an ancient human skeleton was found along the banks of the Columbia River near the city of Kennewick, Washington. The remains were estimated to be more than 9,000 years old and the discovery set off a long legal battle between Native Americans who wanted to rebury the bones and scientists who wanted to study them.

The issue was finally settled just before President Obama left office. He signed a bill that returned the skeleton to the tribes, and soon they will carry out a burial of their own. The Northwest News Network’s Anna King (@AnnaKingN3) reports.