Visited the Cahokia Mounds last weekend and something felt off

I drove down to Collinsville, IL to check out the Cahokia Mounds for the first time. The big Monk's Mound is impressive, but I noticed the steps going up are all wooden and modern looking, not like anything ancient. There's a sign saying they rebuilt the stairs after a 2018 storm damaged the old ones. It kind of broke the illusion for me, like visiting a historic site with a plastic castle on top. Has anyone else been there and felt like the modern fixes take away from the real experience?

3 comments

3 Comments

lucashenderson17d ago

Last summer at Gettysburg I saw where they put a modern metal viewing platform right on Little Round Top and it ruined the whole vibe for me too. @sullivan.quinn it's not just the Cahokia stairs, historical sites are getting these obvious modern fixes everywhere. I guess there's no way around it when things rot or wash away but it still takes you out of the moment.

fionanguyen17d ago

Did they at least try to match the wood stain or texture to the original, or is it just raw lumber up there... I wonder if they had to get approval from some historical board to change the stairs like that.

sullivan.quinn17d ago

Yeah you're right, I used to not care about matching but this totally changed my mind.