Living History Farms is a 500-acre

open-air museum An open-air museum (or open air museum) is a museum that exhibits collections of buildings and artifacts out-of-doors. It is also frequently known as a museum of buildings or a folk museum. Definition Open air is “the unconfined atmosphere� ...

located in

Urbandale, Iowa Urbandale is a city in Polk and Dallas counties, Iowa, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the city population was 45,580. It is part of the Des Moines– West Des Moines Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Urbandale was incorporated a ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. The museum's mission is to educate visitors and demonstrate the past 300 years of Iowa's agricultural history. As its name implies, the museum follows the methodology of

living history Living history is an activity that incorporates historical tools, activities and dress into an interactive presentation that seeks to give observers and participants a sense of stepping back in time. Although it does not necessarily seek to ree ...

in depicting the lives of people living on farms in the years of 1700, 1850, and 1900, engaging in various agricultural activities.

History

Dr. William G. Murray, an

agricultural economist Agricultural economics is an applied field of economics concerned with the application of economic theory in optimizing the production and distribution of food and fiber products. Agricultural economics began as a branch of economics that specif ...

from

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a public land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricultural College and Model Farm, Iowa State became one of the ...

and two-time gubernatorial candidate, founded the organization, which opened to the public in 1970. Dr. Murray's passion was not to have a museum where people viewed things under glass, but rather a place where history was lived. Living History Farms was the site of

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

's ecumenical service,

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

, and homily to an audience of around 340,000 on October 4, 1979. During his homily, the Pope spoke about the importance of farming and linked the people who worked the land with the sustenance of the people of the country. He also spoke of the importance of land conservation.

About

The museum is divided by Interstate 35/80 and a tractor-drawn cart transports visitors from the town (which is next to the entrance at the Visitor Center) to the west side of the museum. After visiting the 1700

Ioway The Iowa, also known as Ioway, and the Bah-Kho-Je or Báxoje (English: grey snow; Chiwere: Báxoje ich'é) are a Native American Siouan people. Today, they are enrolled in either of two federally recognized tribes, the Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma an ...

Farm, 1850 Farm, 1900 Farm, and Wallace Exhibit Center, visitors return to the east side of the interstate. The 1875 town of Walnut Hill features multiple structures, including the Martin and Ellen Flynn Home and barn, both original to the site. The 1700 Ioway Indian Farm features the farming techniques of the Ioway Indians. Archaeologist

Mildred Mott Wedel Mildred Mott Wedel (née Mildred Ingram Mott; – ) was an American scholar of Great Plains archaeology and ethnohistory. She was one of the first professionally trained female archaeologists and was distinguished in her field. Many of her publi ...

was consulted for the design of this project. The farm includes produce originating from the 1700s including blue corn and Omaha melons. Interpreters inform visitors about the Ioway lifestyle including topics such as hunting, roles of men and women, and tool making. Demonstrations include tanning hide, food preparation, and making traditional pottery. The 1850 Pioneer Farm includes a log cabin where visitors are able to see how women cooked with

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron– carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impur ...

over a fire, as well as tasks done by hand such as wool spinning and

candle making Candle making was developed independently in many places throughout history. Dipped candles made from tallow were made by the Romans beginning about 1000 BCE. Evidence for candles made from whale fat in China dates back to the Qin Dynasty (221� ...

. Outside visitors can see an ox driven plow till the fields filled with crops of corn, wheat, and potatoes. The 1875 Town of Walnut Hill features a general store, schoolhouse, Victorian mansion, bank, and law office among other pioneer town buildings. The town portrays the relationship and dependency between the town's people, the merchants, and the farmers. The 1900 Horse Powered Farm demonstrates the changes that modern machinery and the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

had on farm life. Handwork was replaced by the use of machinery, and work within the farm house changed to include methods such as canning. The particular type of interpretation employed at Living History Farms is third person, so while the people visitors interact with in the museum may be dressed in the manner of the appropriate time period, they do not attempt to "act" as if they are truly the person they are interpreting (accents, etc.). The presenters often perform the work, and thus will say, "I baked this bread," or they address audiences with phrases such as "This is how a Print Shop would look in the year 1875." However, since the presenters do not role play, visitors can ask questions about modern issues and receive direct answers. File:Living History Farms 10.jpg, 1700 Ioway Farm File:Living History Farms 12.jpg, 1700 Ioway Farm File:Living History Farms 23.jpg, 1850 Pioneer farm File:Living History Farms 05.jpg, Bank in 1875 Town of Walnut Hill File:Living History Farms 04.jpg, Bank in 1875 Town of Walnut Hill File:Living History Farms 32.jpg, 1900 Farm house File:Living History Farms 35.jpg, John Deer corn planter at 1900 Farm File:Living History Farms 36.jpg, 1900 Farm File:Living History Farms 41.jpg, 1900 Farm File:Living History Farms 38.jpg, 1900 Farm pigs File:Living History Farms 47.jpg, Pantry in house at 1900 Farm File:Living History Farms 52.jpg, Pantry in house at 1900 Farm

References

External links

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CBS Sunday Morning Living History Farm Feature

{{Authority control Urbandale, Iowa Living museums in Iowa Farm museums in Iowa Museums in Polk County, Iowa Museums established in 1970 1970 establishments in Iowa