Urbandale’s Living History Farms Wins State Recognition

Urbandale's Living History Farms was honored at the 2013 Golden Silo Awards recently for its excellence in telling the story of American agriculture, according to the Des Moines Register.

Living History Farms received the award for Outstanding Interpretation at an April 3 luncheon in Waterloo. The program was hosted by Iowa's Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area.

“We are humbled to be among the Golden Silo recipients this year,” Ruth Haus, president of Living History Farms, told the newspaper. “We are grateful for the SSNHA’s support in helping us to provide outstanding interpretation to our visitors.”

The museum, located at 11121 Hickman Rd., is one of the first sites in the Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area, the article said.

SSNHA is one of 49 federally designated heritage areas in the nation and is an Affiliated Area of the National Park Service. The Heritage Area covers 37 counties in the northeast quadrant of Iowa. Interstate 80 borders it on the south and Interstate 35 borders it on the west.

Through a network of sites, programs and events, SSNHA interprets farm life, agribusiness and rural communities – past and present.

Living History Farms tells the story of how Iowans transformed the fertile prairies of the Midwest into the most productive farmland in the world, a Living History Farms press release stated. The 500-acre open-air museum allows visitors to travel through five historic time periods spanning 300 years.

On-site interpreters provide a learning environment of seasonal activities and demonstrations.