Cahokia Mounds Historic Site

Positives: Excellent, best in class, interpretive center (top quality and informative displays); welcoming, friendly staff; great selection of preserved mounds; good selection of books on Cahokia and Indian mounds of the Midwest.
Opportunities for improvement: Offer books on North American archaeology/​earliest civilizations; walking path to Woodhenge.

Finding the Cahokia Mounds historic site was a hit for our family. We all have an interest in archeology and were thrilled to find artifacts in the region. I always believed I would need to go to Central America to see the early people to this area. Although preserving the mounds didn’t actually begin until mid 20^th century, the area is now a world historic site.
Fascinating. I found the history from 1880’s to 1945 – 50’s fascinating: some farmers didn’t see the value in preserving this for our future generations, and sold the mound for soil. We may be more aware today, but it takes a concentrated effort to preserve.
I highly recommend visiting the site and learning about these early settlers. How can a community of 20,000 people be ignored?

Great historic location located less than 15 minutes from the Downtown Saint Louis. Very few people know the rich history surrounding this site, however at one time, Cahokia was one of the greatest cities in the world, larger than London was in AD 1250. The locals, known as Mississippians were great builders who created a number of items from homes to huge mounds which are still maintained to this day.
The site itself is huge, complete with a number of trails and walkways, which make it perfect for the exploer inside all of us, however for those not feeling so adventerous the key spots have their own designated parking spots for those who do not wish to walk all the way. Anyways the site consists of multiple mounds, however the largest is Monks Mound which towers over the rest of the historic site. There is a stairway that allows visitors to make the journey to the top of the mound, which offers some great views of this once powerful village. In addition to Monk’s Mound you should also be sure to check out some of the other parts of the site, like Woodhenge. Woodhenge is a circular arrangement of posts, which align to the rising sun at certain times of the year.
Another great stop is the visitors center, which offers some great exhibits and videos on the history of the site. Another option would be to download the mobile app, which offers a free guided tour of the site along with additional information. Cahokia Mounds also host a number of events throughout the year, including the Market Days & Indian Art Show which brings together a number of vendors all across the country.
I almost forgot to mention the most important part and that is that all of the history and access to the site is FREE, however donations are accepted.

Pros: Monk Mound provides stellar view of St. Louis, especially during the morning calm. Favorite exercise location for locals.
Cons: Not enough placards explaining the significance of North America’s largest pre-​historic city.

It is not only one museum. There is one free museum and several historic sites to visit. The more I know about this place, the more I became absorbed with the mystery of the environment.

Located about 15 minutes from the Gateway Arch, just off of Route 70, this is a must visit for anyone interested in history, culture, and nature. The Site is not only easy to get to but is quite large with many walking/​jogging paths.
The main focus of the Site is to highlight the Mississippian Native Americans from this area who built a grand community. The short video and museum were one of the best cultural exhibits I have ever experienced. It was large and inclusive, perfect for helping children get involved in what they’re learning. Towards the end is even a section on the archeological exploration of the Site, something not prevalent enough in most museums.
One of the main attractions is a guided tour of the Monk’s Mound, the largest mound on the Site and home to the Mississippian leader. Although the top provides an amazing view of the area, be ready for lots of walking up and down steps. Be ready with a full bottle of water and comfortable walking clothes/​shoes. Once you’re ready, one of the knowledgeable guides will take you to the top while teaching you more about the their history and culture.
Once back at the visitors center, you can purchase souvenirs or books on the Mississippians, but price are a little higher than expected. Also, while the area is great for picnics, there are only vending machines in the «café,» so come prepared with food.
The experience overall was great, we learned a lot about their history and culture while also experiencing the great landscapes of the area.

I’m an anthology major so this was an interesting place to visit. The mounds were new to me since I didn’t know if the United states even had any. The lay out of the land was interesting and the museum was pretty cool. They recreation of the Indian village was a nice walk through history

I’m going to say this is one of the most important historical sites a person can visit in this country, keeping in mind this continent has been home to cultures other than ours for a lot longer. If you come here thinking this will entertain you like Disney World, you will be disappointed, but if you come here with an open mind, ready to learn something new, you’ll enjoy it.
Go to the museum first. If you watch the movie and see the exhibits, you’ll understand and appreciate the mounds a lot more when you take the guided tour. I like that taking pictures is allowed (just not with a flash) so take lots of pictures in the museum and outside.
The museum is very informative about what we know about the Mississippian culture, it treats the subject respectfully, and the guides couldn’t be any friendlier or more knowledgeable. When our tour guide on Monk’s Mound (was it Rebecca?) said it is clear they grew corn here but not beans, it piqued my interest, since that would lead to malnutrition, not getting enough essential amino acids without the vegetable protein. She was right on top of it and said that may have been one of the reasons the culture eventually left the area. It’s clear to me that she had studied her subject extensively. (Most American Indian cultures I have learned about grew the Three Sisters – corn, beans, and squash. Corn stalks supported the beans as a trellis, and the beans are nitrogen-​fixers that fertilize the soil for the nitrogen-​hungry corn, and the squash are just good winter keepers and nutritious.)
Only 1% of the mounds have been excavated so far, so they are keeping their biggest secrets for future generations.
Bring your walking shoes. I might avoid going in the hottest days of the Illinois summer.
I remember reading Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee in high school and watching documentaries on American Indians and the American Indian Movement (AIM) over the years, I have a lifelong interest in archaeology, so Cohokia blended all of these together very nicely.

This past weekend was the annual Indian Art Show at the Mounds. They host 20 different vendors from the western half of the states. They also host two additional market days. One in the spring around Easter and the other is the fall market and it is held Thanksgiving weekend. If you are looking for a different gift idea head to the Mounds and check it out. It could turn into your one stop shopping place.

The Cahokia Mounds are awesome! I came here a couple years ago while visiting family in St. Louis, and plan to go again soon while I’m here. It’s absolutely beautiful, and it gave me chills. The museum is great – very informational, and helpful. I really enjoyed it.

I have been to this site a half a dozen times before, because the borrow pits that were used to get the dirt that built the mounds are great wetlands now that attract unusual, even rare, birds. Even on this trip I couldn’t help but photographing some Cattle Egret that were present in the borrow pit wetland to the SE of the Visitor’s Center. Plus the forested area to the south west of the mounds is a great hold for interesting breeding and migrant birds as well.
But I always knew I was missing something by not exploring beyond the birds, and had always promised that when the kids got a bit older we’d make a trip here.
My daughter is now 11, my son 8, and my daughter has studied pre-​Columbian cultures in Mexico and has loved learning about them. She was beyond excited to visit here when I told her of our spring break plan.
What an incredibly under appreciated site this is, even though it is one of the ONLY 17 World Heritage sites in the continental United States. In 1250 AD this settlement of 20,000 Mississippian Indians was substantially larger than London. This Mississippian Indian community thrived, and may have at one historical point a century or two earlier than this, had 40,000 Cahokia inhabitants that learned how to specialize, trade and barter so that they could build a sophisticated society of interconnected and interdependent families, clans and groups. European culture wouldn’t have cities this sophisticated for a number of centuries after the Mississippian culture hit it’s cultural apex.
They were also tremendous mound builders, including the largest mound, called Monk’s Mound because of monks that later inhabited the area living on a mound, but now it seems that they didn’t choose to live on what is now known as Monk’s Mound. Still, the name sticks. It is about 100 feet tall, and you can climb up it as long as you use the stairs (do not climb off path to protect this 1000 year old World Heritage Site of «outstanding universal value»). It is one of 80 mounds on the 2200 acre site. The view from the top is surprisingly inspiring, and it doesn’t take much imagination to think about the Mississippian Indian Chief in his habitation at the mound’s top looking out over acres and acres of people under his rule.
Besides the amazing Monk’s Mound itself, the exhibits and displays in the fantastic Visitors Center are what steal the show here. They contain wonderful artifacts, an overwhelming amount of information (which can be good and bad), some simply captivating life size dioramas of Mississippian Indian daily life, as well as a great scale version of the whole site in the main area of the Visitors Center.
If you want to get the whole experience, see the movie before you do anything else, plan to spend the better part of a day, and dig deep into the exhibits at the Visitors Center before you go out and walk the mounds. Because, besides Monk’s Mound, the 2200 acre site just isn’t that exciting. It is just mounds you can’t climb on in this wonderful green space. In fact, even Monk’s Mound disappoints in the amount of information that is on the site to help one understand exactly what one is experiencing.
That is my main complaint. Once you are out and walking the site, the vast information inside the amazing Visitors Center becomes less accessible. Now, you can buy a $ 1.00 Cahokia Mounds Tour Guide, and it is well worth it, but for my money, I’d like to see more on site plaques with bite sized details of interest along the way as you walk. It is a small criticism, and all it takes is time and money, I know.
So the kids thought the walk was a bit longer than necessary. We walked from the Visitors Center, to Monk’s Mound, over to Woodhenge and back the Visitors Center past the Twin Mounds and across the Grand Plaza. A few plaques with informational details might have made the mile and a half walk a bit more palatable for them.
Overall, it was an amazing treat to dig into this native American cultural jewel, right here in Illinois, a site that I would bet most who don’t live in the area have any clue about, nor understand how significant the site is. Our three and a half hours were just about right for our Visitors Center and walk, but there is more to learn and do there, and I expect we will make a trip back to explore it again in two or three years. It was that cool, really it was.

A tremendously under appreciated site. The museum is superb and gives you a wonderful sense of what this place might have been like six centuries ago. The view from the top of the mounds really is remarkable. I visited after a marathon 30 hour drive from Nevada and found it quite fascinating to look west and see the St Louis arch.
I was very happy to see many school children visiting.

I had no idea I would love this place so much. It was such an experience. I was in the area alone on business and had a perfectly fine time with no one in tow. I highly recommend getting some background by visiting the museum. I learned so much about what to expect and was able to identify so much on the walk. The museum was put together very well. Even the video was entertaining and all the recreations and artifacts. I also grabbed a free map, which is a must. Wear comfy shoes. This will take more time than you think! In all I spent at least two hours there.
The 2,200-acre site included 120 human-​built earthwork mounds over an area of six square miles, of which 80 remain. Cahokia Mounds is the largest archaeological site related to the Mississippian culture, which developed advanced societies in the central and eastern present-​day United States, beginning more than five centuries before the arrival of Europeans. It is the largest prehistoric earthen construction in the Americas north of Mexico.
The people who lived amongst Cahokia were called the Mississippian culture and it spread all over the area. Cahokia was the center of it all, the big city, if you will, and this is what it looked like.
The chief lived here among the highest mound, Monks Mound. Ceremonial buildings and the homes of the elite stood on top of the many platform mounds. There were many ceremonial and trade connections to other Mississippian sites throughout the Midwest and Southeast.
Historic accounts in diaries and drawings were recorded during the De Soto exploration, summarized by Garcilaso De Le Vega in 1539 – 1543. Among other accounts from watercolor artist John White in 1565, and Jean-​Bernard Bossu, Marquette, Jolliet and other French explores in the 1700s.
Initial occupation during Late Woodland times (AD 700 – 800) included small settlements along Cahokia Creek. Population increased, peaking between AD 1050 – 1150 at 10 – 20,000. A decline in population began in the 1200s and by AD 1350 – 1400, Cahokia had been abandoned.
Cahokia was considered the large city or front line community. There were also suburbs or second line communities, that had there own mounds, plazas and residential areas. Four second line communities have been identified near Cahokia, including East St. Louis (45 mounds), St. Louis (26 mounds), Mitchell (11 mounds) and Pulcher (10 mounds). These communities had populations in the thousands and served as a political and ceremonial center for third and fourth line communities. It was subordinate to Cahokia.
Third line communities were usually villages located along lakes and streams with a population of several hundred. They were administrative and ritual centers for the smaller fourth line communities and had maybe one or two mounds.
Fourth line communities were very small, maybe one house by a farm field or just a few families living in a few houses. Surplus crops from these villages went to the larger communities.
The inhabitants left no written records beyond symbols on pottery, shell, copper, wood and stone, but the elaborately planned community, woodhenge, mounds and burials reveal a complex and sophisticated society. The city’s original name is unknown.
Some of the mounds have been excavated and trinkets, such as this, were found. As well as the remains of hundreds of people. The people of Cahokia traded food for services and trinkets and traveled great distances to communities around the country similar to their own.
There are three distinct mound shapes, including platform, ridgetop and conical. The use and contents of the mounds are based on the shape.
On my high of the mounds, two that I saw were called the Twin Mounds because they are right by each other. One of them is a platform mound called «Fox Mound.» It has not been excavated but is thought to have been the site of a charnel house where important people were prepared for burial in the adjacent Roundtop Mound. It is one of the largest and highest platform mounds at Cahokia.
After learning all this in the museum, it was time for my hike. I saw a lot and at the end was Monks Mound. Monks Mound is the largest prehistoric earthwork in the Americas. Its base covers over 14 acres and it’s 100 feet high. It contains an estimated 22 million cubic feet of earth, all hand-​carried in baskets! I was very proud of myself for making the climb! That’s a must do. You can see the arch from up there!

One of the worlds most spectacular archaeological sites.

There isn’t really much to see at Cahokia Mounds apart from a lot of – well – mounds. It takes considerable imagination to see the place for what it really is. Fortunately, the excellent Interpretive Center helps put everything in context through videos and some of the best displays I’ve ever seen.
One of the highlights of our visit was a guided walk given by Lila, one of the volunteers. She did a great job explaining the history of the site and of the research that is going on today.
This is definitely worth a few hours of your time. Check it out!

This is a great place for couples, families, and groups. I highly recommend Cahokia Mounds to anyone who has an interest in history, nature, or culture.
The interpretive center is well done. Lots of information on the site, the Mississippian way of life, and the process of uncovering the past. Walking the site is just incredible. It is amazing to think that Cahokia was the site of city with 10−20K people while Europe was in the Dark Ages! If you visit, be sure to go on one of the tours with an archaeologist (they offered two different tours while we were there).
We visited on two different days and I’m sure we’ll be back.

This is a very interesting place to visit. It’s not too far to drive if you live in the area. When my husband and I first moved here we took day trips all the time on the weekends. We had a fun exploring all around St. Louis and this was one of the most interesting places we found.

I think I read about Cahokia many years ago in some National Geographic book about UNESCO world heritage sites. It sounded really awesome, so when I moved to St. Louis it was definitely something I wanted to check out.
It’s scenic in the fall with the trees and grass, and St. Louis on the horizon. The mounds are just, you know, piles of earth, but the museum helps to explain the history behind it. Definitely take 30 minutes to check out what’s left of the largest pre-​columbian settlement north of Mexico.

Beautiful, well preserved (as these things go), fabulous historical site and museum. Did you know this is a UNICEF World Heritage site? Do you even know the history of this place and its broader implications on American history? If not you should go, or if you do you should still go an enjoy this place.
I love it here, but as an Archaeologist this really should not come as a surprise to anyone. I’ve had the pleasure to visit many wonderful places and historic sites in America, and this one always is at the top of my list of awesome nerdliness. It is surprisingly quiet here — even St. Louis visible in the distance. There is a surprising calm and hush here — even with groups of school students throwing atl-​atls and running amok around the grounds. The museum is small but provides a comprehensive historical review of the area and the mounds. The site itself is large and wonderful for wandering. Hike up those mounds, tromp through some of the marsh lands, enjoy nature and appreciate this is still around to learn from and appreciate in a fairly industrialized history ignoring culture.

It is definitely interesting to find out that the Cahokia Mounds is the largest prehistoric Indian city North of Mexico. There’s tons of artifacts within the interpretive center to peruse over as well as scheduled information settings.
In addition to the interpretive center you can actually go out onto the grounds and climb the historic mounds.