Between 900 and 1100 AD, people of the Mississippian culture migrated from the Mississippi Valley to a spot a couple of miles east of modern downtown Macon, and leveled the site overlooking the Ocmulgee River that is now OCMULGEE NATIONAL MONUMENT (daily 9am-5pm; free). Their settlement of thatched huts has vanished, but two grassy mounds, each thought to have been topped by a temple, still rise prominently from the plateau. Near the visitor center, which holds artifacts from excavations in the area, you can enter the underground chamber of a ceremonial earthlodge . Modern wooden supports now hold up the roof, replacing the original timbers whose fiery destruction baked the clay floor, thereby preserving a ring of individually molded seats, and a striking bird-shaped altar or dais.

Ocmulgee National Monument

• Ocmulgee National Monument

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