Cahokia

Just to the east of St. Louis, across the Mississippi River in Illinois, is a fascinating, Pre-Columbian site. Today the park contains about 2,200 acres and 80 mounds that were part of the Mississippian culture. Cahokia is the largest, most complex Native American site north of Mexico. No one knows the name of the original site, but early settlers named it for the Cahokia tribe living in the area when the first French explorers arrived.

Archaeologists have discovered some interesting information here. For example, there's a copper workshop, where religious items were made with a technique similar to that used by a blacksmith working with iron. There's also evidence of posts erected in a circle to mark solsitices and equinoxes. The mounds served various functions, including ceremonial and burial, and over 250 skeletons have been recovered from one mound alone.

Today, the museum has nearly a million visitors each year and has received several awards. There's also ongoing research. For more information go to http://cahokiamounds.org or call 618-257-3441  to the Illinois South Tourist Bureau.

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