Cahokia, village in Saint Clair County, southwestern Illinois, on the Mississippi River, near East Saint Louis. Parks College (1927), a division of St. Louis University, is in Cahokia. Nearby in Collinsville, Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site is the site of the largest prehistoric Native American city north of Mexico. This city, covering 16 sq km (6 sq mi), may have been inhabited by as many as 20,000 people of the Mississippian culture between 800 and 1400. In addition to developing a complex agricultural system, the inhabitants moved more than 1.4 million cu m (50 million cu ft) of earth to create their ceremonial mounds. The largest prehistoric earthen work in North America is Monks Mound, site of the principal temple, covering 6 hectares (14 acres) and rising in four terraces to a height of 30 m (100 ft). The area was abandoned by the Mississippian culture by 1400. White settlement began when Cahokia was founded in 1699 by French missionaries and named for a tribe of the Illinois people. The village is the oldest permanent white settlement in Illinois. Cahokia was incorporated in 1927. Population 18,904 (1980); 17,550 (1990); 16,391 (2000).Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2001
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2001 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Cahokia village Information info
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