Effigy mounds are raised beds of earth in the shapes of animals, people, and other symbols, constructed by Indigenous peoples as far back as 1,600 years ago. They often were used as burial mounds and continue to serve as places of spiritual connection. It is thought that the Ho-chunk nation built a majority of the mounds in Wisconsin, though many other groups also may have followed this tradition. The shores of Pike Lake were once home to nine distinct effigy mounds, but years of erosion, farming, and development erased them. The Potawatomi, Ho Chunk, Sauk, and Fox claimed Pike Lake as home at certain times from 1100-1640 AD. They lived in wigwams, caught fish in the lake, hunted, and grew corn, squash, melons, and beans. Pike Lake was also home to a wandering tribe of Potawatomi under Chief Kewaskum as late as the 1840's, using the land north of the lake as a winter home.