Cahokia (Civ5)/Civilopedia

Found in the southern region of the U.S. state of Illinois, Cahokia was once an ancient city comprised of more than one hundred earthwork mounds, constructed around 700 AD by the Native American Mississippian culture. Covering more than 2,200 acres, Cahokia is the largest native city north of Mexico. Throughout the city's early history, it served as an important economic hub along the Mississippi river, joining far off settlements in the exchange of goods and services.
Of the approximately 70 to 80 mounds remaining today, the largest is that of "Monks Mound," which covers an area nearly as big as the Great Pyramid at Giza. Although the site is thought to have been abandoned some 600 years ago, European settlers, including a group of French monks, inhabited the area during the early 1800s (the monks providing the mound's namesake).
Today, Cahokia is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Several hundred thousand tourists from around the world visit the site each year, while archeologists working in the area expand on their research and continue to make new discoveries.