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History of Dickson Mounds
ISM-Dickson Mounds is 89 years old. In 1927, chiropractor Don Dickson began to dig in the ancient burial mounds on his family farm. Instead of removing the bones from the graves he excavated, he removed only the dirt, leaving the bones and associated objects in place. He first covered his excavation with a tent. Later he replaced the tent with a building that he opened as a private museum. His work received national and even international attention, and that first year attracted 10,000 visitors to view the site.