The "Iron Horse" devastates the mounds

The "Iron Horse" devastates the mounds. Ocmulgee National Monument. , The "Iron Horse" devastates the mounds , The 1843 and 1873 Railroad Cuts , In 1843, the Central Railroad and Canal Company constructed an initial mainline between Macon and Savannah, a distance of 160 miles. The railroad's path came right through the Mississippian mounds and destroyed portions of the Lesser Temple Mound. As the railroad company cut through the mound artifacts and prehistoric burials were exposed. Today, the park road leading to the Funeral Mound parking lot follows the old railroad cut. , In 1873, the Central Railroad and Canal Company moved the railroad line north to its present location destroying the northern half of the Funeral Mound. The railroad company only left the southern portion adjacent to the railroad undisturbed from the construction of the new rail line. The railroad workmen unearthed skeletons, shells, spear points, clay pipes, and earthen pots. This railroad line is still in operation today., Today, as you look out at the mounds, the railroad cuts are clearly visible, however, 1000 years ago when the Mississippians lived here; you would have seen a large field. The large field may have been where the ball court was located and used for playing games, such as stick ball and chunky. The photographs to the right show what the landscape would have looked like before and after the railroad cuts., Captions , Aerial photograph of both cuts , Funeral Mound 1930s , 1000 years ago , 1843 , 1873