The Farm at Prophetstown
Where you can visit a 1920's working farm
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Nestled right in Prophetstown State Park, you will find a treasure worth visiting. The Farm is a 95-acre working farm that you can visit from April until November seven days a week. Set with a 1920s Sears and Roebuck catalog home, there is also a replica Gibson farmhouse in which you can tour and enjoy a five-course farm-to-table dinner.
The Farm is a private not-for-profit establishment dedicated to the education of the community about animals and homesteading skills. Their mission statement reads “Located in West Lafayette, Indiana near the town of Battle Ground, The Farm at Prophetstown offers a unique experience on all aspects of farm life. Programs revolve around the 1920s farms as they began their transition from animal to tractor power. The Farm is a training farm for sustainable agriculture, homesteading, gardening, canning, as well as farm-to-table cooking, sewing, and quilting. It draws on a wide range of resources such as beekeepers, master gardeners, farm experts, and home economics experts. The Farm is a non-profit organization operating 100 acres of land leased from Prophetstown State Park. Our staff is dedicated to showing, sharing, and teaching about historic agriculture and the homesteading arts.”
Because The Farm at Prophetstown was established before Prophetstown State Park was instituted, they are technically in the park yet not part of the park. The very beginning of The Farm was as a museum in 1995, but they have evolved much since that time. Hosting primarily heritage breeds of livestock, they are also home to many rescued animals. These animals have been well-acclimated to humans to where even the roosters are calm and friendly. As soon as you set foot on The Farm, you will surely notice the flock of over 100 chickens roaming free-range throughout everything. There are fifteen different breeds in this flock, including the critically endangered Crévecoeur chickens. Other breeds include Buckeyes, Javas, Speckled Sussex, and Brahmas. A good place to watch the chickens would be near the gooseberry and currant bushes where you may see them jumping up to pick berries and eat them.
In keeping with the 1920s setting, The Farm grows all of its own hay and corn to feed the animals. While they do allow their chickens to sometimes hatch a batch of chicks naturally, they prefer to raise chicks in autumn so that they are mature and ready to lay eggs by the next spring. This way, there is always a good supply of eggs for the summer crowds.
The Farm at Prophetstown offers many classes to the community. These classes include seed saving, horses, food preservation, beekeeping, cooking with organ meat, benefits of local meat and eggs, cast iron cooking and care, medicinal plants of Indiana, making Christmas ornaments from eggs, and a 2-hour class all about keeping chickens. The Farm at Prophetstown also offers guided tours for local schools. Tours begin at 8:30 AM from April 1st until November 1st. If you are wearing jeans and closed-toe shoes, you can even help with the chores.
Speaking of doing chores, as a non-profit The Farm is always in need of volunteers. Run by a volunteer board of directors, they rely on volunteers to help with chores, cleaning, running tours, and the everyday work of a real farm. They will accept volunteers ages 8 and up. If you come to volunteer, or even just to visit, be sure to follow staff guidance and don’t enter the pen of any animal unless instructed to do so. While these animals are very accustomed to human interaction, they can still be startled. Some of them might even be friendlier than you wanted!
One benefit to their location in Indiana is being near Purdue University with their veterinary program. As part of their veterinary program, Purdue also has a specific avian studies program which brings students to The Farm quarterly to practice on the flock of chickens. Keeping a flock of 100 chickens healthy is hard work, and often difficult when faced with the financial limitation of being a non-profit. The veterinary students are able to help keep the flock healthy and flag down chickens that are not thriving.
Lauren Reed, events director, cook, and “Chicken Maven” at The Farm, wants visitors to see that homesteading is possible for everyone. She believes that raising animals, chickens especially, can help teach children how to care for animals and respect them. She loves when people are able to see how even the chickens all have different personalities, each being very unique. Whether you drop in for a quick tour, a class, or spend some hours volunteering, The Farm at Prophetstown is worth your visit. You can fit in a few hours while camping in the surrounding Prophetstown State Park. You can follow them on social media or reach them at (765) 567-4700. They appreciate a heads up for large groups of volunteers.
Originally published in the April/May 2020 issue of Backyard Poultry and regularly vetted for accuracy.
