Angel Mounds State Historic Site

Angel Mounds State Historic Site on the Ohio River east of downtown Evansville preserves the remains of a major pre-Columbian city of the Mississippian culture, occupied from roughly 1100 to 1450 CE. At its height the settlement had a population estimated at 2,000 to 3,000 people, a palisade wall around the central precinct, and at least 11 earthen mounds used for ceremonial, political, and residential purposes.

The site is impressively well-preserved. The main platform mound rises 44 feet and offers views across the Ohio floodplain that make the strategic logic of the location clear. An interpretive centre provides archaeological context, and several reconstructed structures give a sense of how the settlement functioned. The site is a National Historic Landmark and is considered one of the best-preserved pre-Columbian sites in the eastern United States. Walking the full grounds takes about 90 minutes.

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A story
Angel Mounds was one of the largest Mississippian settlements in North America between 1100 and 1450 CE, home to as many as 3,000 people at its peak. The site was abandoned before European contact — the reason for the departure is unknown — and remained largely undisturbed until systematic excavation began in the 1930s. The main platform mound, 644 feet long and 44 feet high, is the largest earthwork in Indiana and still dominates the site.