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The Great Temple Mound at Ocmulgee National Monument. Sheron Smith

For information about visiting the site: www.nps.gov/ocmu/index.htm

was created. Since then, people from all over the of the first humans to come into the Southeast
world have visited Ocmulgee. They come for passed through. Large ancient civilizations rose
many reasons, but they invariably leave with a at the site and dispersed. English and Native
reverence for the place and the people who built communities met and traded at the site. The
it hundreds of years ago and those who have expansion of the United States, ethnic cleansing,
maintained it in recent decades. industrialization and plantation slavery all played
a role here. Ocmulgee is also crucially
“For some people, Ocmulgee is a place to important for understanding the history of
enjoy a quiet walk in the woods not far from American archaeology and the struggle to balance
downtown, look for migrating birds or ride their preservation with development.”
bikes,” Jennings says. “I appreciate all of those Jennings’s pictorial history of Ocmulgee,
uses, but for me, as a student of Native American published by Arcadia, is aimed at a general
history, the historical significance of Ocmulgee audience. His academic work related to the site
outweighs them all. Ocmulgee allows us, includes research presented in many different
even forces us, to come to terms with venues, including the American Historical
the past. Not too many other sites can Association, the Georgia Association of Historians
claim that. Some aspects of its past are (of which he is president-elect), the Southeastern
grand and worthy of celebrating, while Archaeological Conference, the Southeast Indian
others may require some introspection Studies Conference, and the Native American and
and soul-searching.” Indigenous Studies Association.
What does he consider the most captivating Including the pictorial history, Jennings has
aspect of Ocmulgee? All of it. published three books on different aspects of
“The sheer scope of human history covered Native American history as sole author and
by Ocmulgee is its most fascinating feature. Some contributed chapters to two others. With his

6 MIDDLE GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY