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The Emerald site, also known as the Emerald Acropolis, was an early Mississippian pilgrimage center key to Cahokia's development. This paper presents the hitherto unpublished results of two archaeological projects conducted at the site, one led by Howard Winters and Stuart Struever in 1961 and the other by Robert Hall in 1964. These investigations produced the most comprehensive information on Emerald's Moorehead phase (1200-1300 CE) occupation during which two of its mounds were capped, a secondary mound was constructed on the central mound, and a mound-top structure was erected on this secondary mound. Similar activities took place throughout the region …