Millstone Bluff is located on IL State Rt. 147 north east of the little village of Robbs. A scenic walkway and the wooden stairways make hiking to the top much easier than the trails used by the Indians and our forefathers. Information tables are filled with historical facts and strategically placed along the winding trail atop the bluff. It is an easy hike to take the next time that you are exploring the Shawnee National Forest.
The following is copied from an information sheet written by the USDA Forest Service and distributed at Shawnee National Forest Headquarters, Harrisburg, IL.

"Millstone Bluff is the site of an undisturbed prehistoric Mississippian village, stonebox cemetery, and rock art site. The Bluff is itself is a unique topographical feature rising 320 feet above the surrounding comparatively flat terrain. It appears as an "island" amidst the hills. Bay Creek, a major tributary of the Ohio River, is located west and north of the bluff. It was so named because early settlers in the area carved milling stones along the base of the northwestern edge of the bluff. These hand-carved millstones were used to mill local farmer's grains into flour.
Millstone Bluff is surrounded by a massive sandstone escarpment. Large sandstone boulders lying at irregular angles are scattered along the steep slopes.
Although the human occupation at Millstone Bluff extends from A.D. 500 to A.D. 1500, the majority of the artifacts recovered from the site are Mississippian (A.D. 900-1500). The village consists of approximately 24 house depressions loosely clustered around a central plaza. These are the remains of rectangular, semi-subterranean mud and stick, thatched houses. When the rectangular houses is abandoned or burned, the square basement-like hole fills into a rounded, basin-like depression. There were probably two to six individuals per household living at Millstone Bluff, including parents, children, and perhaps grandparents.
The village cemetery is located nearby. It contains approximately 20 coffin-like stone boxes. The prehistoric people of Millstone Bluff buried many of their dead in rectangular graves lined with large, thin limestone slabs to form a box. Past looting and vandalism have destroyed the great majority of the graves. Prehistoric burials are primary targets for "pothunters" in the eastern United States because of the likelihood of recovering valuable stone tools and whole pottery vessels within the grave. Numerous depressions resulting from looting and vandalism activities are visible.
The rock art or petroglyphs present at Millstone Bluff were almost certainly carved by Mississippian Indians. The figures depicted are similar to other Mississippian motifs found on pottery, carved stone figurines and engraved copper plates. The figures are actually "pecked" into the stone, and not "carved"--they are formed by the repeated battering or hammering of a small "hammerstone" onto the flat rock surface. It is unknown exactly what tile figures represent but they are similar to mythic creatures found in Cherokee legends and stories. For example, the spider depicts the water-strider spider that brought fire from an island to the Cherokee on the mainland when other beasts such as the bear and raven could not for fear of being burned.
Millstone Bluff is a very special place. Nowhere else in southern Illinois have the former Native American occupants left such diverse evidence of southern Illinois's rich prehistoric past. Please help us protect our nation's prehistoric past and fragile archaeological resources by walking softly in the footsteps of the Mississippian villagers. Remember these resources belong to all of us."