MACON, Ga. — Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical Park saw a drop in visitors last year, despite being one of Macon's top attractions.
"I've been here numerous times over the years. I remember coming back here when I was 5-years-old, Easter," visitor Dickie Malone said.
He shares his memories of all the times he spent at the park with his grandson Carson James.
"That mound where they used to bury all the Indians, he used to roll down it with his Easter suit on, and his mom used to tell him, 'Get up off that ground! You're going to get dirty! You're going to ruin that!'" Carson said.
Every year thousands of people from all over the world come to see Macon's popular attraction to make their own memories, but in 2018, visitation hit a low.
In 2016 and 2017, visitors spent around $9 million each year. In 2018, visitor spending dropped to about $7.9 million. Superintendent Jim David says that's due to a few factors.
"We were having a lot of work done here at the visitor's center on a new roof and new heating and air conditioning system. Also last year was a fairly wet year. Our visitation is very weather dependent," David said.
Their famous Ocmulgee Indian Celebration was cut a day short because of the weather. Even then the park's history still draws people from all over the nation.
"I'm from California, and I'm a retired city planner, and human habitations always interest me and how people lived and how that evolved over time," visitor James Lopes said.
David says with the park's future plans to expand from 700 acres to 3,000 acres, they expect to see a boost in visitation.
"Very likely in the not too distant future we'll be having more of a maybe $10 million impact on the local community, if not more," David said.
David said the government shutdown caused them to close for more than a week at the end of the last calendar year.
The expansion plans will include more recreational trails and provide better access to get up the mounds.