Brown's Guide to Georgia

Visit the fortified aboriginal center that was the home to several thousand people more than 400 years ago. Walk among the mounds, the largest standing 63 feet tall and covering 3 acres. Tour the museum where artifacts and exhibits interpret daily life in this once self-sufficient Native American community.

The Etowah Indian Mounds symbolize a society rich in ritual. Towering over the community, these flat-topped earthen knolls were used between 1000 and 1500 AD as platforms for temples, mortuaries and homes of the village’s priest-chiefs. In some mounds, nobility was buried in elaborate costumes and accompanied by items they would need in their afterlives. Although the Etowah people left no written records, artifacts help explain their lives and culture. Many artifacts at the museum show that the natives of this political and religious center decorated themselves with shell beads, tattoos, paint, complicated hairdos, feathers and copper ear ornaments. Well-preserved stone effigies and objects made of wood, seashells, stone and copper are also displayed.

Etowah Mounds was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964.

FACILITIES: 6 Earthen Mounds Museum Gift Shop 20 Picnic Tables Riverside Benches Bus Parking

Thursday-Saturday 9am-5pm; Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. For a more enjoyable visit, plan to spend 1-2 hours.

Rates vary for state park lodging, campsites, shelters, golf courses and other facilities. Check with the individual park’s website or by telephone to confirm current prices.

Admission: $2.50-$4. Group rates available with advance notice. Bus parking available. $3 daily parking fee