During September, I took a road trip out to Iowa to get some service done on my RV.  I chose a route that took me to several historical sites.  One of the most unique sites was my visit to Effigy Mounds National Monument.

This National Monument is set along the banks of the Mississippi River in the upper north-east corner of Iowa.  I had no idea what to expect at this stop other than it was a red dot on my National Park Service map and chance to get another stamp in my NPS Passport.

What I found is that this National Monument is a sacred burial site for early Native Americans.  It preserves over 200 burial mounds.  Many of these mounds are shaped like animals such as bears and birds.

Burial Mounds

The Visitor Center at the National Monument has a small museum with displays.  Here’s what I was able learn about the site and people who created the mounds.

• • The use of burial mounds was very popular with the native people in the mid-west.  The map below shows red dots representing documented mounds sites.

• • The earliest mounds at the National Monument date back about 2,500 years.  These early mounds were conical in shape.  They were anywhere from 2-8 ft in height and 10-20 ft in diameter.  Later mounds were linear in shape.  Mounds in the shape animals were found in the upper Mississippi region.

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    An aerial view showing the outlines of several effigy mounds. Photo is from the NPS.

• Burial mounds could contain the remains of one or more people.

• The burial mounds at this national monument were found in the early 1700’s by fur trappers coming down the Mississippi River.  Although the site is wooded now, back in the 1700’s much of the site was open prairie.

Effigy Mounds National Monument

Efforts to preserve the effigy mounds site began in 1909.  Initial efforts were to include the site in a large Upper Mississippi Valley National Park.  Those efforts were deemed not feasible due to the proposed size.  The plans for a park were scaled back and in 1949 it was designated a National Monument by President Truman.

Today, the national monument site encompasses a two large tracts along the western shore of the Mississippi River.  The burial mounds are set above the river on a large plateau.  To see the mounds requires some hiking up to the plateau.  There are several hiking trails to various mound sites.  The area is wooded but the mound sites have been kept clear so they can be viewed.

I did one of the hikes in the North Unit.  It was about a 2 mile hike through the woods and I got to see several mounds.  The trails are well-marked, but it does take some effort for the first .2 miles to get up to the plateau.

I spent about 3 hours at the site.  There is plenty of parking at the visitor center which can accommodate RV’s.  This site is not a scenic wonder and doesn’t have any historic buildings.  Also, there’s not much known about the people who made the mounds.  But, it is an interesting place to see how a culture dealt with their dead.  A lot of work was devoted to building these mounds over hundreds of years.  It’s also a nice peaceful setting along the Mississippi River with plenty of hiking trails.

The Great River Road

On my way to the Effigy Mounds, I followed a route that paralleled the Mississippi River in Illinois and then crossed over to Iowa.  These were some very scenic country roads and with nice quaint towns to pass through.  I learned that I was on portions of the Great River Road which is a National Scenic Byway that follows the Mississippi from its source in MN all the way down to LA.

In addition to the nice scenery, there’s lots of history to see on this route.  My short time on the Great River Road sparked my interest.  I’m planning a road trip for next year to do more of this route.