Explore Georgia's Native American History
Visitors can explore numerous sites throughout Georgia to learn about the state's original inhabitants, including the Mississippian, Creek and Cherokee cultures. Here are five fascinating destinations to explore historic landscapes from the mountains to the coast.
Rock Eagle Mound in Eatonton, Georgia. Photo by @dylanstewartphotography
Rock Eagle Mound
Only two bird effigies are known to exist east of the Mississippi, and both are in Putnam County, Georgia. Rock Eagle in Eatonton is the largest of them at 102 feet long and 120 feet from tip to tip. Scientists estimate that it was created 1,000-3,000 years ago, making it the second oldest Indian mound in Georgia, after the Sapelo Island Shell Rings.
Etowah Indian Mounds State Historic Site in Cartersville, Georgia. Photo by @mikedesilvestri
Etowah Indian Mounds State Historic Site
The Mississippian Culture was a large Native American tribe, and Cartersville is home to the most intact site ever discovered from this tribe. Visit the site to learn about the Indigenous people who lived in the area and explore the cultural landscape. You can watch a 15-minute film, follow a nature trail along the Etowah River, and visit six mounds, a plaza and portions of the original village. To assist those with mobility impairments, the site has all-terrain track wheelchairs available.
Kolomoki Mounds State Park in Blakely, Georgia. Photo by @westy4xer
Kolomoki Mounds State Park
Located in Blakely, Kolomoki Mounds State Park protects the largest Woodland Indian site in the Southeast. The park features the oldest great temple mound, burial mounds, and ceremonial mounds. A unique museum is built around an excavated mound where visitors learn about the culture surrounding this historic site. The park also features scenic trails and camping, among other recreational activities.
Visitor center at Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park in Macon, Georgia. Photo by @gcalebjones
Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park
This park in Macon, which is soon expected to become America’s next national park, is dedicated to preserving the mounds of the Mississippian Culture, built here around 900. Families can climb stairs to see views from the tops of several mounds or walk the trails filled with wildlife wonders. Visitors to the museum can see a replica Mississippian Culture hut, examples of the Indian dress and actual artifacts unearthed in the area. Be sure to talk with the ranger about how to get your kids a Junior Ranger Badge for this monument.
Lighthouse on Sapelo Island, Georgia. Photo by @benjamingalland
Sapelo Island Shell Ring Complex
You’ll find three donut-shaped mounds rise about 20 feet above the tidal marsh just off the coast of Sapelo Island. Thought to have been created by the oldest Native American civilization in Georgia, these three rings have been carbon-dated to 2170 BC. That’s older than Egypt’s pyramids!
Find many more Native American historic sites on ExploreGeorgia.org.
