CHATTANOOGA (AP) - A Chattanooga businessman has welcomed visitors to his commercial property - the site of 1 of the city's oldest Indian mounds.
Kenny Wilhoit, a food manufacturer, was surprised about the discovery of the mound a few years ago. He listened intently to local American Indians when they called him, seeking a conservation easement on the mound.
According to the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Wilhoit then did something very unusual - he encouraged visits to what they told him was a very sacred spot.
Tom Kunesh of Chattanooga, a member of the Advisory Council on Tennessee Indian Affairs, calls the mound "the oldest thing in Chattanooga that humans made."
Kunesh and others celebrated Sacred Sites Day at the mound June 20, honoring Wilhoit along with the ancestors buried there.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
