'Found' on Founders Day: Explore the Tallgrass Prairie at Homestead National Historical Park

BEATRICE, Neb. - Step into the world's most endangered ecosystem!

Join Homestead National Historical Park for a National Park Service Founders Day program called Found, taking place Sunday, August 23, at 2:00 p.m. at the park's Education Center.

Found offers visitors a hands-on way to connect with one of the park's most iconic landscapes, the tallgrass prairie. The program begins indoors with a presentation on the history and ecology of the tallgrass prairie. Explore what makes this all but vanished ecosystem so significant to the story of homesteading and the American Midwest.

Participants will then head outside for a guided walk through the prairie, finding a new appreciation for indigenous grass and wildflowers found throughout the park. The program concludes at the Education Center, where visitors will craft their own take-home tallgrass prairie terrarium.

"Found is about giving people a personal connection to the land around them," said Superintendent Susan Cook. "Once you can name what we should be looking at, the tallgrass prairie becomes something you want to notice everywhere."

Visitors should dress for outdoor walking and weather conditions.

For more information on available accommodations please contact Accessibility Coordinator, Amber Kirkendallat (402) 223-3514.

Homestead National Historical Park is a unit of the National Park Service, located four miles west of Beatrice,NE. Hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Trails are open daily from dawn to dusk, andadmission is free! For more information, please call (402) 223-3514, or visit http://www.nps.gov/home.

Remember, Homestead National Historical Park has an exciting schedule of events planned for 2026. Keepup with the latest information by following us on X (HomesteadNHP) and Facebook (Homestead NationalHistorical Park).

NPS

About the National Park Service. Established in 1916, the National Park Service preserves America's most treasured natural and cultural places for the enjoyment, education and inspiration of current and future generations. Learn more at nps.gov .