With 13 original structures situated on the four acres that comprise Heritage Farmstead Museum, Kathy Wilson, recently retired vice president of marketing, development and livestock calls this an “educational historic mecca.”

Although over 15,000 kids filter through the “mecca” a year via field trips, educational intentions are not always on the forefront of attendees minds. Wilson said people walk the dirt paths for several reasons, like engagements, weddings, summer camps, events such as Lights on the Farm and more.

“Anybody that walks in here is going to be educated,” Wilson said. “People from Germany, Japan, Mexico ... can relate to the wash station where they're scrubbing on scrub boards and they're hanging clothes on the clothesline. I watch grandparents tell their grandchildren, ‘This is how I did my laundry growing up in Japan or Germany.’ It is universal.”

The backstory

The 12-room house was built in 1891 by Hunter Farrell for his wife Mary Alice and daughter Ammie and was situated on 363 acres. Other existing buildings original to the historic site are the foreman’s cottage, pole barn, lambing barn, ram barn carriage house, smoke house, potting shed and more.


The house was last lived in in 1972. In 1973, Heritage Association, a nonprofit organization which manages Heritage Farmstead Museum was formed.

What’s happening

Throughout the year events are held where guests can interact with historic live exhibits and take a mule drawn wagon ride. Photo opportunities with farm animals and demonstrations on sheep shearing, wool and fiber processing and weaving are also available.

Heritage Farmstead gives public tours, offers grounds admissions and tours of the Victorian home.


“You can come and be led by a docent, which is a tour guide, often dressed in a prairie dress, that will take them through the Victorian home and talk a little bit about the history of the house. Then they love to walk the four acres,” Wilson said. “It's beautiful to get up face to face with our animals. We have a mammoth Jackstock donkey back there named Poncho and we have pigs, sheep, goats, chickens and ducks.”

Get involved

In addition to financial donations that are put towards building upkeep, attending livestock, a recent initiative to clean up the on-property creek and more, the nonprofit organization has a need for volunteers. Wilson said volunteers lead education tours, work in the weekly preschool program, prepare for events, clean animal pens and more.