Saturday, September 12, 10:00am to 4:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Save the Prairie Society’s invites you to a free community event: The Annual Old Fashioned Prairie Fest at the parkway of the Prairie House! Rain date September 19.

FREE Event! Something for everyone:

• Vendors will offer Arts and Crafts
• Prairie Society experts will offer Prairie Walking Tours and talk about how Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve was established and how it is maintained
• STPS local historian will give tours of the 1870s farmhouse and the historic 1853 Schoolhouse Museum within and show immigrants’ trunks
• Ledo’s Pizza will offer Food and Beverages
• Our Information Booths will have more details on Prairie Events, Restoration Efforts and other prairie and sustainability volunteer opportunities
• Big Run Wolf Ranch will introduce you to a variety of interesting mammals from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm, tentatively including a Lynx, an Opossum, a Porcupine and an Armadillo
• Historical reenactors will be available to talk about the time periods they interpret and demonstrate some common daily activities

Saturday, July 11, 10:00am – 12:00pm and Saturday, August 29, 10:00am – 12:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Join us for our summer Insect Safaris with naturalist guides Michael Rush, Jim Rowan and Larry Godson.

Using nets provided by Save The Prairie Society, participants will be able to catch, identify and study a variety of insects. In the end, we will release them back onto the prairie. Note: please wear sturdy shoes and long pants!

Sunday, June 28, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Join Jim Rowan as he guides us through another historical tour through the US, this time sharing images and stories of stopping places along the path westward. See the old forts and iconic natural landmarks along the Oregon Trail and get a better idea what challenges early pioneers faced leaving their old lives behind and facing such an arduous journey.

Sunday, May 31, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Presenter: Patricia Reaves

This presentation addresses the English Staffordshire Ironstone tableware that was imported to the United States throughout the Victorian era. It was widely available for purchase and would have been at home in our early community of Franzosenbusch. The focus will be on transfer ware Ironstone, makers and markings, and how these historic relics are still collectible today.

Saturday, April 25, 10:00am – 12:00pm & 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Wolf Road Prairie Workday @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

On the April 25 workday, we will be participating in the City Nature Challenge, documenting the species we see using iNaturalist. Please join us! Contact Mary Zaander for more details.

Sunday, April 26, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Presenter: Dr. Spencer Cortwright, Biology Department, Indiana University Northwest

With this presentation, Dr. Cortwright aims to quantify the ecological gem we enjoy in this area, convey how it came to be, illustrate several examples and get folks excited about dealing with restoration needs.

Friday, March 27, 7:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Guide: E.J. Neafsey

Join our Woodcock experts at dusk to see the male woodcocks perform their daring courtship flight.

Every spring, our male Woodcocks return to an area a little south of the Prairie House deck. From that vantage point, when the weather conditions are just right, one can watch their dramatic and dangerous flights. It is their way of attracting a female. They are showing off their courage. Just before the male takes off, he makes loud nasal peent calls that are preceded by soft throaty notes. Periodically, the male launches into flight flying higher and higher, about a hundred feet from the ground.

No other bird performs a more dangerous courtship flight. Join us and see and hear this unique and daring courtship flight from the deck of the Prairie house.

Sunday, March 8, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Presenter: Jack Shouba

While all but a small percentage of the original prairie landscape of Illinois was lost to farming in the nineteenth century, cemeteries meant to keep the memory of early settlers alive also gave refuge to quite a few remnant prairies. Come learn more about this history and how volunteers monitor the progress of unique native plants preserved there over time.

Sunday, February 22, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

Presenter: Patricia Reaves

This presentation addresses the English Staffordshire Ironstone tableware that was imported to the United States throughout the Victorian era. It was widely available for purchase and would have been at home in our early community of Franzosenbusch. The focus will be on transfer ware Ironstone, makers and markings, and how these historic relics are still collectible today.

Sunday, January 25, 1:00pm – 3:00pm
Free event @ the Historic Prairie House, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester

In part two of a continuing series, photographer and naturalist Jim Rowan will present more of his favorite images from decades traveling to State Parks in the United States and Provincial Parks in Canada.

His focus is on the unique travel opportunities to visit unusual sights that help us stay in touch with native landscapes and the wildlife they support. After showing local favorites like the Indiana Dunes and Castle Rock, Jim will share memories from parks out west, way up north and all the way to the islands of Hawaii.