Ongoing Investigations at the East St. Louis Mound Center: The New Mississippi River Bridge Project

Investigations for the New Mississippi River Bridge Project are yielding new and important information about the East St. Louis site ( 11 S706), the second largest Mississippian mound and town complex in North America. While previous investigations at the site documented the remnants of mounds and other monumental/ceremonial features, excavations in the old National Stockyards are yielding detailed information about the site's residential zone. One significant aspect of these excavations has been the documentation of a substantial Lohmann-phase occupation that will essentially rewrite the history of this important site and that of early Cahokia. Preliminary findings are summarized in this paper.