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Effigy Mounds National Monument preserves three prehistoric sites in Allamakee County and Clayton County, Iowa in the midwestern United States. The North Unit (67 mounds) and South Unit (29 mounds) are located where the counties meet along the Mississippi River. They are contiguous and easily accessible. The Sny Magill Unit (112 mounds) is approximately 11 miles (17 km) south of the other units, and offers no visitor facilities.
It is adjacent to the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.
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Prehistoric mounds are common from the plains of the Midwest to the Atlantic seaboard, but only in this general area was there a culture that regularly constructed mounds in the shape of mammals, birds, or reptiles. The monument contains 2,526 acres (10 km²) with 206 mounds of which 31 are effigies. The others are conical, linear and compound. Woodland period Indians built mounds from about 500 BC until the early European contact period. When the American prairies were plowed under by European settlers for agriculture, many mound sites were lost. Effigy Mounds National Monument is the largest known collection of mounds in the United States.
Examining the geography of the region reveals why human cultures have occupied this part of the country for so long. Historically, most of the Great Plains to the west of the Mississippi River was covered in grasslands, which are very prone to fires that keep trees from becoming established. Here in extreme northeastern Iowa, the Effigy Mounds area was a point of transition between the eastern hardwood forests and the central prairies. Native American and early settlers would have been able to draw on natural resources available in forests, wetlands, and prairies, making the site hospitable for humans for many centuries.
The visitor center, located at the park entrance, contains museum exhibits highlighting archaeological and natural specimens, an auditorium and book sales outlet. The park has eleven miles of hiking trails. No roads exist in the park. Rangers give guided hikes and prehistoric tool demonstrations, mid June through Labor Day weekend. Educational programs are presented on- and off-site by appointment.
Natural features in the monument include forests, tallgrass prairies, wetlands and rivers. There are no lodging or camping facilities in the park. Nearest camping is at Pikes Peak State Park and Yellow River State Forest in Iowa and Wyalusing State Park in
Wisconsin. Various primitive campgrounds exist in the area as well. The national monument is quite close to the town of Marquette, Iowa, and just across the Mississippi River from the city of Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin.
It was proclaimed a National Monument on October 25,
1949. As an historic unit under the National Park Service, the National Monument was administratively listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 15,
1966.
References
*
*
The National Parks: Index 2001–2003. Washington: U.S. Department of the Interior.
External link
* Official NPS website:
Effigy Mounds National Monument * Sny Magill Unit coordinates:
Category:1949 establishments
Effigy Mounds National Monument
Category:Allamakee County, Iowa
Category:Archaeological sites in the United States
Category:Buildings and structures in Iowa
Category:Clayton County, Iowa
Category:Landmarks in Iowa
Category:National Monuments of the United States
Category:Registered Historic Places in Iowa
Category:Parks on the Mississippi River
