Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve
Continuing our virtual and literal trek through the western suburbs of Chicago, Jamie had the chance to dig right in (or at least haul right out) by volunteering some maintenance work at Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve. About 20 nature enthusiasts showed up to help stop the advancing wooded area by cutting back rogue trees and brush from the edge of this important piece of the Illinois landscape.
We plan to visit and document this beautiful public place throughout the coming season. Today we have some early springtime pictures and a brief history of an area that may have disappeared long ago if not for the Great Depression and some determined individuals.
Wolf Road Prairie Nature Preserve covers 80 acres in Westchester (Cook County, IL) and includes dry and wetland prairie landscapes. It is one of the two largest and highest quality black-soil prairies in the region. Its survival in the middle of Chicago's suburban sprawl hasn't been easy. Too wet to farm in the early days, the land was left alone until the 1920's when developers divided it into 600 lots where homes were to be built. Hundreds or properties were sold but the Depression hit before anything was built other than a grid of concrete sidewalks in the southern part of the land.
These sidewalks still remain and provide easy access to a special landscape.
We have added some of the landscape's features to our recently created exploration on Google Earth but here are driving directions for those who plan to visit by car rather than fly in from outer space!
Even once the economy recovered, the landowners found they were still unable to build because the lots were not big enough to install septic tanks. The Cook County Forest Preserve considered acquiring the area in the 1950's but the large number of owners made the task too daunting so they put their efforts elsewhere.
Then in 1972, an organization called Save the Prairie Society was formed by Alma Greene, Jack Shouba and others. They planned to persuade the Westchester Park District to purchase the prairie. However, the group did not include any locals so lacked clout with the village, that is until Valerie Spale joined in. Valerie and crew began what would turn out to be a decades long project of land acquisition, one lot at a time. The final piece in the puzzle didn't come until 1992 and the area was dedicated a nature preserve the following year.
Today Valerie is still involved with looking after the prairie and organizes the ongoing maintenance work as well as nature and bird walks throughout the year. More information about the prairie can be found here.
Wolf Road Prairie is owned by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and the Forest Preserve of Cook County. The Illinois Nature Preserves Commission oversees management and protection of the site.
Pizzo & Associates sponsors and is involved with protecting the prairie. The company specializes in ecological preservation and large scale native landscaping.
The native prairie plants should spread very quickly into the newly cleared space. As landscape designers and garden lovers, we look forward to watching the progress. We will be creating future posts on the many grasses and flowering varieties.
