Several thousands of years ago in the lower Mississippi River Delta, Native Americans began constructing mounds to bury the dead. For the next fifteen centuries, these various groups would build what may be called the first dense urban settlements in what would later become the United States. Today some of these former settlements and earthworks are overseen by the National Park Service, which has seen fit to create this website to provide information to the general public. Here visitors can review information about these settlements, view a timeline of related events, and learn about the complex nature of trade within and among these communities. The site also has a “Delta Voices” section, which contains some brief quotations from early explorers who traversed the area, along with comments from Native Americans and perspectives from contemporary archaeologists and scholars.