Rappahannock Tribe reacquires sacred ancestral home in Virginia

April 2 (UPI) -- The Rappahannock Tribe has formally reacquired 465 acres its ancestral home at Fones Cliff, a sacred site located along the eastern side of the Rappahannock River in northern Virginia.

A four-mile stretch of white cliffs jutting up from the riverbank dominates the site, which officially changed stewardship on Friday. The area is also home to one of the largest bald eagle populations along the east coast.

"We have worked for many years to restore this sacred place to the Tribe. With eagles being prayer messengers, this area where they gather has always been a place of natural, cultural and spiritual importance," Rappahannock Tribe Chief Anne Richardson said in a press release from environmental nonprofit Chesapeake Conservancy.

The cliffs will be placed in trust with the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Their location -- inside the Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge -- will remain publicly accessible.

The tribe plans to construct a 16-century village replica on the site for public education purposes, CNN reported. Tribal officials also plan to use the site to expand their "Return to the River" program, which teaches Rappahannock youth traditional tribal knowledge and practices.

English settlers forced the Rappahannock Tribe from their ancestral home in the 1660s.

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and US Fish and Wildlife Service Director Martha Williams lauded the tribe's reacquisition of the land in a press release from the Department of the Interior on Friday.

"The Department is honored to join the Rappahannock Tribe in co-stewardship of this portion of their ancestral homeland. We look forward to drawing upon Tribal expertise and Indigenous knowledge in helping manage the area's wildlife and habitat," Haaland said.

"This historic reacquisition underscores how Tribes, private landowners, and other stakeholders all play a central role in this Administration's work to ensure our conservation efforts are locally led and support communities' health and well-being."