At Kincaid Mounds are preserved the remains of a number of earthen mounds that were once part of a city created by Native Americans during the Middle Mississippian period. (A.D. 900-1500). This period was characterized by the rise of agriculture, specialization of labor within communities, and building of elaborate mound systems for burials and rituals.

The Kincaid site likely served as a trade link between native settlements in the Cumberland-Tennessee river valleys and the metropolis at Cahokia. Artifacts found at the Kincaid site indicate that while the mounds were built relatively shortly before the appearance of Europeans in Illinois, Native Americans had occupied the area at different periods over hundreds of years. The property is located within what is known as the Kincaid Site, designated in 1964 as a National Historic Landmark and listed in 1966 on the National Register of Historic Places.

State holdings contain the remains of nine mounds and a large portion of the associated village site. Additional mounds and the remaining portion of the village are located on adjacent private property. Level areas of the site are planted in crops.