The "Iron Horse" devastates the mounds

In 1843, the Central Railroad and Canal Company constructed an initial mainline between Macon and Savannah, a distance of 160 miles, and its path ran through the Mississippian mounds, destroying portions of the Lesser Temple Mound. As workers cut through the mound, artifacts and prehistoric burials were exposed. In 1873, the company moved the railroad line north to its present location, destroying the northern half of the Funeral Mound and leaving only the southern portion adjacent to the railroad undisturbed from the construction of the new rail line. Railroad workmen unearthed skeletons, shells, spear points, clay pipes, and earthen pots. The railroad line remains in operation today, and the cuts are still clearly visible, though 1000 years ago the area would have appeared as a large field that may have contained a ball court used for games such as stick ball and chunky.

Macon-Bibb County, Georgia · United States