Home of an ancient metropolis

Welcome to Angel Mounds

WALKING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF LEGENDS

Located on the banks of the Ohio River in southwest Indiana, Angel Mounds State Historic Site is one of the best-preserved, pre-contact Native American sites in North America. Built between A.D. 1000 and 1450, the town was occupied by more than 1,000 people who were part of the Mississippian culture, and included earthen mounds built to elevate important buildings.

Angel Mounds

The original town covered an area of 103 acres and served as an important religious, political and trade center for people living within a 75-mile radius. Nearly 575 acres comprise Angel Mounds State Historic Site, which includes an interpretive center, recreations of Mississippian buildings and a working reconstruction of the 1939 Works Progress Administration (WPA) archaeology laboratory. The 500-acre non-archaeological portion of the site contains a nature preserve with hiking and biking trails and an 18-hole disc golf course.

Children Under 3 Admission: FREE
Youth (Ages 3 - 17) Admission: $3
Adults (Ages 18 - 59) Admission: $5
Seniors (Ages 60+) Admission: $4
Members Admission: FREE

Purchase Tickets

Please note: The Angel Mounds Visitor Center is undergoing renovations and the exhibit portion is closed. The grounds will remain open throughout the duration of the renovations, with reduced admission. The gift shop is open. For the safety of our visitors, the site village closes at 4:30 p.m. Renovations will be completed in the fall.

Visiting on a free day? Specific site access and tour space will be limited. Please contact the site in advance of your visit to learn more and reserve your space.

Purchase Tickets

Operating Hours

Wednesday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Thursday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Friday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Saturday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Sunday: 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Monday: Closed

Tuesday: Closed

Holidays

Easter – Closed

Memorial Day – Open for preregistered tours only

Labor Day – Open for preregistered tours only

Thanksgiving – Closed

Christmas Eve – Closed

Christmas Day – Closed

Free Days

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Presidents’ Day

Juneteenth Celebration (June 15)

smiling youth

Spring Superhero Academy

March 25 – 29
Youth entering grades 1 – 4
$160 per child for the week, 10% discount for members

Calling all superheroes! Do you have what it takes to become the next member of our superhero pack? Put your strength, speed, creativity and brain power to the test in our superhero challenges as you design your superhero costume, craft your own superhero story and take part in clue solving missions. You may even transform into a mad scientist and explore matter and chemistry, or for all Marvel and DC fans – star in your own film about your superhero team.

Register
smiling youth

Summer Camps

Select dates June 3 – July 19
Youth entering grades 1 – 6
$160/camper; 10% discount for members 

Angel Mounds day camps have something fun for everyone! Campers can explore space or the jungle, learn to be secret agents and international athletes, or even compete in your own Olympics.  

Campers should come with their own sack lunch, two snacks, water bottle, closed-toe shoes and sunscreen for walks in the woods and around the site.  

Explore camps

Step back in time

Immerse yourself in a 1,000-year-old Native American culture at this incredibly well-preserved, 600-acre site featuring earthen mounds built by a Mississippian society.

Visitor Center at Angel Mounds

Explore our Interpretive Center

Wind your way through the interpretive center to orient yourself to the history (and archaeology) of the site. Angel Mounds tells the story of the people of the Middle Mississippian culture who inhabited this area from 1000 to 1450 A.D.

Take a Hike!

Twelve earthen mounds, built for ceremonial and residential purposes, are scattered throughout grounds encompassing nearly 100 acres. The site also includes the incredible Angel Mounds Loop Trail spanning roughly four miles. This trail will lead you to an unexpected slice of archaeological history and stunning scenery.

Trail at Angel Mounds
Glenn A. Black

Meet Glenn Black

Explore a new experience that guides visitors through the life of noted Indiana archaeologist Glenn A. Black, who conducted fieldwork for many years at Angel Mounds. An interactive area also allows visitors to reconstruct a broken clay pot, explore a recreation of Black’s desk, and experiment with a simulated, tabletop magnetometer to uncover hidden objects in the ground and more.

students walking at angel mounds state historic site

BOOK A FIELD TRIP

Students can try their hand at archaeological activities and see Black’s real tools and desk. They can also wind their way through interactive exhibits in the interpretive center and explore 600 acres where the earthen mounds built by the Mississippians still stand today. Call 812.853.3956 to schedule your visit to Angel Mounds or click below to learn more.

Learn more Download Educator Guide

Mississippian culture

Mississippian culture was innovative and the first to extensively exploit agriculture and build permanent communities. This economic and social system was made possible by the widespread cultivation of corn, which was nutritious and could be stored in large quantities. The town here lends its name to the Angel phase of Mississippian culture, found near the confluence of the Wabash and Ohio Rivers from the late 11th through the 15th centuries. By 1450, the site was empty and no one knows for sure why the inhabitants left. Maybe the wood and game would have been depleted. Or intense agriculture might have overworked the soil. The reasons they left are questions archaeologists continue to research.

Angel Mounds Illustration
Archaeology Dig

ARCHAEOLOGY AT ANGEL MOUNDS

In historic times, the site was a working farm of the Angel family. In 1938, with a donation from Eli Lilly, the Indiana Historical Society purchased the land to protect it from development. Starting in 1939, under the direction of Glenn A. Black, a crew of 277 WPA workers began excavating the site, recovering more than 2.5 million artifacts. Black’s efforts had a major impact on North American archaeological thought and technique, and at one time, the project was one of the largest of its kind in the United States.

Small archaeology dig

Unearth History All Year Long

Our members enjoy exploring the life and times of Indiana’s original inhabitants, hiking and biking through the grounds, as well as pursuing archaeological interests all year long! What will you learn today?

explore our membership plans

Plan Your Trip

  • Admission

    Please note: The Angel Mounds Visitor Center is undergoing renovations and the exhibit portion is closed. The grounds will remain open throughout the duration of the renovations, with reduced admission. The gift shop is open. For the safety of our visitors, the site village closes at 4:30 p.m. Renovations will be completed in the fall.

    Visiting on a free day? Specific site access and tour space will be limited. Please contact the site in advance of your visit to learn more and reserve your space.

    Purchase Tickets
  • Contact

  • Group Rate

    Discounted tickets are available for groups of 10 visitors or more. To receive group rates, please call the site in advance and purchase all tickets with one payment. Find prices below.

    Adults – $5
    Seniors* – $4
    Youth* – $3
    Children under 3 – FREE
    *Seniors: Ages 60 and older, Youth: Ages 3 through 17

    For group transportation to a state historic site, contact our partners at CharterUP.

  • Discounts

    Special discounts are available for educators and education groups, military, Access Pass holders and more.

    Learn more
  • Tours

    Self-guided tours of the site are available during regular operating hours. Hiking trails are also open during regular operating hours.

  • School Groups

    Field trip admission is free for pre-scheduled, accredited schools and homeschool groups of 10 or more Indiana K-12 students. Members of the Indiana Association of Homeschool Educators receive free daily admission with proof of membership. Call 812.853.3956 to schedule your visit.

    Academic topics covered include Prehistoric Native American culture (Mississippian ca. 1000-1400 A.D.), archaeology, nature and star lore.

    Learn more
  • Commercial Photography And Videography

    If you are a photographer looking to book a shoot at Angel Mounds State Historic Site, please review our commercial photography policy and application process. Learn more >>

8215 Pollack Ave, Evansville, IN 47715

Visit Today

Angel Mounds has a distinctive Visitors Center that looks like the mounds, so you’ll be able to see it from the road once you reach Pollack Avenue. Parking is available at the Angel Mounds Interpretive Center.

UNCOVER MORE INDIANA STORIES AT THESE OTHER HISTORIC SITES