Places to Go-Forest Preserves-Winfield Mounds

Winfield Mounds

The 359-acre Winfield Mounds Forest Preserve in Winfield is an undeveloped natural area with restored savannas, prairie and a stretch of the West Branch DuPage River.

Driving Directions

Winfield Mounds is on the south side of Geneva Road between Winfield and Indian Knoll roads. It does not have a parking lot.

West Branch DuPage River at Winfield Mounds

Trails

Limestone trails connect the Illinois Prairie Path to the path's Geneva Spur.

Fishing

You can fish for bass, sunfish, carp and bluegill along the West Branch DuPage River.

Anglers 16 or older who are not legally disabled must carry valid Illinois fishing licenses. Creel limits, minimum lengths and other regulations are on our Fishing page.

History

Winfield Mounds was named for burial mounds of prehistoric Native Americans who lived along the West Branch of the DuPage River. The three mounds at this site are dome-shaped and set in a triangular pattern and are the only documented prehistoric burial site in DuPage County. The mounds lie west of the river, along the edge of a mature oak-hickory forest. After vandals dug up the mounds in the 1920s, and subsequent digs by the University of Chicago and Wheaton College, it is believed that nothing more remains in the mounds.

The Forest Preserve District purchased the majority of land at this preserve between 1970 and 1972.