EXPLORE · ANCIENT SITES
Ancient Sites in Iowa
Effigy Mounds National Monument above the Upper Mississippi River bluffs contains 206 Native American mounds including the Marching Bears group — 10 bear effigies lined up in a row, built between 500 BCE and 1200 AD. The mounds look out over the Mississippi River from forested bluffs in Iowa's Driftless Area, the unglaciated corner of the state where the ancient world is closer to the surface.
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Effigy Mounds National Monument
206 Native American mounds rise above the Upper Mississippi River bluffs of northeastern Iowa, including 31 effigy mounds shaped like bears and birds built by Woodland culture peoples between 500 BCE and 1200 AD. The Marching Bears group — 10 bear effigies in a row — is one of the most striking prehistoric sites in the Midwest. 14 miles of hiking trails wind through hardwood forest with sweeping Mississippi River views. Excellent NPS interpretive center. Free entry. No camping in the monument. Located at 151 Hwy 76, Harpers Ferry, IA — 3 miles north of Marquette on the Iowa-Wisconsin border.
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