Ocmulgee Mounds park expands with 136-acre donation. Here’s why
The Georgia Department of Transportation donated 136.55 acres of land to the National Park Service, expanding the Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park, the Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative announced Monday.
The newly donated and undeveloped acreage sits within the Ocmulgee River corridor and was acquired by GDOT in 1998 for wetland mitigation tied to the Fall Line Freeway in Twiggs County, according to the release.
“We at the Georgia Department of Transportation are pleased to make this sizable donation of land, which will have a profound and meaningful impact,” said GDOT Commissioner Russell R. McMurry. “This acreage is rich with cultural significance and history, and we are proud to contribute to the expansion of the Park.”
This donation is not formally part of ongoing bipartisan congressional efforts to create a national park and preserve, the release said.
The donation represents land that was historically inhabited by the Muscogee (Creek) people before their forced removal in the years leading up to the Trail of Tears. Its transfer to the National Park Service supports the preservation of a culturally and historically significant landscape.
“This land holds profound cultural and historical meaning for the Muscogee (Creek) Nation,” said Principal Chief David Hill. “Each step in reclaiming and protecting this sacred ground is a step toward healing and honoring our ancestors. We are grateful to the State of Georgia and to the many partners who are helping to restore and protect the original footprint of Ocmulgee.”
The donation from GDOT supports a broader regional conservation effort to protect the Ocmulgee River Corridor as both a cultural and ecological landmark and a driver of economic development.
“This land donation is a perfect example of how local, state, and tribal collaboration can lead to meaningful conservation outcomes,” said Seth Clark, executive director of the Ocmulgee National Park and Preserve Initiative and mayor pro tempore of Macon. “The gift of this tract is major progress in middle Georgia’s long-term vision for the Ocmulgee Corridor; it shows that Georgians at every level are up to the task of keeping our end of the bargain and protecting this unique landscape for generations to come.”
The land donation was made possible by the 2019 John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation Act, a law which authorized the expansion of Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park and gave the park the authority to accept the donation, according to the release.
