For five years from 2008 to 2012, over 100 archaeologists and other specialists conducted excavations in front of a new bridge being built across the Mississippi River connecting St. Louis, Missouri, with East St. Louis, Illinois. Working on the Illinois side of the river, the Illinois State Archaeological Survey excavated some twenty-six acres, uncovering thousands of features, and more than a million artifacts. This project will result in a dozen or more technical reports, but this impressive tome summarizes the findings of this massive project.
At its peak in about A.D. 1050, Cahokia had a population of 20,000 to 25,000 people concentrated in three precincts—downtown Cahokia (now a state historic site), St. Louis (now covered by the modern city), and East St. Louis. This study is the first to explore the East St. Louis Precinct in a big way, and it reveals huge amounts of information about greater Cahokia from houses, pits, burials, post pits, plazas, mounds, and built landscapes. While a complete reporting of the results of this massive project will take decades, the authors produced this volume so that the general public would have a good idea of what was discovered. Each chapter focuses on a specific geographic feature or material aspect of the project. Some of the topics covered include the Cemetery and Main Street mounds, community organization, and the people. There are chapters on chronology and ceramics, lithics, exotica, plants, and burned structures. Two chapters present views on the bigger picture of Cahokia. In all, twenty-four authors contribute fourteen chapters
These this massive project covered about seven percent of the East St. Louis Precinct. The rest has either been destroyed by urban development or is hidden under the modern city. But if this project is an example, huge amounts of data remain under the crumbling urban structure, and for several years The Archaeological Conservancy has been buying up abandoned lots and homes in East St. Louis to preserve what remains.
Revealing Greater Cahokia is an outstanding contribution to our knowledge of one of North America’s great urban centers. It is lavishly illustrated with dozens of photos, maps, charts, and drawings, so that the general reader can grasp the extent of this project and understand Cahokia’s place in the American story.
