Historic Baseball Season
Join the Walnut Hill Bluestockings for a season of vintage baseball! Watch the home team compete in 1870s-rules baseball game at the Walnut Hill Field. Cheer the batters or “strikers” as they call their pitch and “Leg it” to first. Support the team captain as he argues with the umpire and see if the one bounce rule will be enforced or if new fangled ideas of “catching on the fly” will prevail. The team makes sure kids have a chance to bat around at the end of the game! Games on May 2, May 31, June 6, July 4, July 18, Aug 8, Sept 5, Sept 19, and Oct. 3. All games begin at 2:00--except for July 4th (2:30).
Give Us A Hand Activity Program
Tuesday, June 1 through Sunday, August 15
Give the historic interpreters a hand with their chores and historic tasks. Children and adults can assist staff with hands-on activities at a variety of historic sites. From grinding corn to printing a handbill, or churning butter to grooming an ox, varied activities are offered every day from June 1 through August 15. Activities take place from 10 am-Noon and 1 pm-3 pm and vary from day to day. Specific daily activities are posted at the LHF Visitor Center; all activities are weather dependent.
Behind the Barn Free Concert Series
Wednesday, July 7, 6-9 pm - Metro Arts Jazz In July - FREE
Presented by Fitness Sports with additional support from Atlantic Bottling. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and gather behind the Flynn barn for an evening of live music. Food concessions and cash bar with pop, beer and wine will be available. Please no outside coolers or beverages.
Fred Gazzo and the Metropolitan Band – Performing jazz and swing standards. This special Jazz in July evening features lawn games for all, kid’s crafts and local artists displaying their creations.
History Snapshot: Circuit Court Hearing
Saturday, July 17, 1-4 pm
Join the citizens of Walnut Hill at the C.H. Taylor Law Offices for an afternoon of law and order. Lawyers, witnesses, judge and court clerks, re-created by costumed interpreters, will present real court cases from 1870s Iowa courts. Museum guests will sit on the jury and find out if their verdicts match those from the 19th century! Cases last approximately 20 minutes.
Behind the Barn Free Concert Series
Sunday, July 25 5-7 pm - FREE
Presented by Fitness Sports with additional support from Atlantic Bottling. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and gather behind the Flynn barn for an evening of live music. Food concessions and cash bar with pop, beer and wine will be available. Please no outside coolers or beverages.
The BannedWagon – Flat Rack Express Tour - Rootsy old country and bluegrass music, popular kids songs and rock n roll-oldies. The group of farm-boy musicians singing tunes from a flat rack is comprised of five seasoned musicians.
Behind the Barn Free Concert Series
Wednesday, August 4 6-9 pm - FREE
Presented by Fitness Sports with additional support from Atlantic Bottling. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and gather behind the Flynn barn for an evening of live music. Food concessions and cash bar with pop, beer and wine will be available. Please no outside coolers or beverages.
Matt Woods and the Thunderbolts - Down home juke house blues
Family Weekend: Threshing Days
Saturday August 7- Sunday August 8
From hand power to horsepower, witness it all as you hear the smash of the flail, the roar of the steam-powered thresher, and the clicking of the cutter bar. Experience the many methods used to harvest oats and wheat from 1850 to the present and help bring in the harvest that will feed our animals throughout the winter. Demonstrations will be weather dependent. Visit the children’s craft center in the barn and enjoy free popcorn and lemonade.
History Snapshot: Pioneer Wedding
Saturday, August 14
Join the 1850 farm staff as they recreate a pioneer wedding celebration, including the wedding ceremony, dancing and wedding cake. The pioneer farm family looked forward to weddings as a chance for neighbors and friends to gather. Traditional foods and fun were always a part of the festivities. Groomsmen might play a good-natured prank on the wedding couple. LHF visitors will become part of the day’s fun, with ceremonies at 11:00 am and 2:00 pm.
Behind the Barn Free Concert Series
Wednesday, September 1 6-9 pm - FREE
Presented by Fitness Sports with additional support from Atlantic Bottling. Bring a blanket or lawn chair and gather behind the Flynn barn for an evening of live music. Food concessions and cash bar with pop, beer and wine will be available. Please no outside coolers or beverages.
Brother Trucker- Roots rock/alternative country. Roots rockers Brother Trucker are unique in their art of telling the story of everyday people through their original lyrics. Also known to do a few select cover songs, the group has an alternative country sound.
Family Weekend: Farmer’s Fall Carnival - NEW
Saturday, September 4 and Sunday, September 5
Spend the weekend enjoying the sights and sounds of a small town fair! Walnut Hill will celebrate the fall with a mix of modern and Victorian entertainments including music, carnival games and strolling players. Enjoy pony rides, a melodrama, old-fashioned carnival games and the 1875 traveling museum of curiosities. Also a variety of hand-cranked, band and fair organs will share their music throughout the weekend, as members of the Carousel Organ Association of America gather for their rally.
1st Annual Homeschool Day, “Fall Chores Day”
Wednesday, Sept. 8
Living History Farms welcomes homeschool families! Tour 300 years of Midwestern history, from when the Ioway Indians farmed in Iowa to the beginning of the 20th century when farmers used horses, and participate in chores done by children. Explore the daily life of a child in 1875 as you tour the town of Walnut Hill and participate in chores at 5 locations throughout town. And don’t be late for a lesson at the schoolhouse!
Pre-registration required; e-mail educ@lhf.org or call 515.278.5286 ext. 178. Activities take place from 10:00 – noon, and from 1:00 – 3:00. Once you register, you will receive a list of activities for the day. Special discount of $1.00 off admission price for homeschool families that pre-register.
Photography Day
Saturday, September 18
Enjoy a day of photography workshops in Iowa’s largest outdoor classroom! Take a lens for a “test drive” from the Canon or Nikon representatives. Photography experts will be on hand to offer classes and will be out in the field to help you perfect your photography technique. Amateurs as well as professionals are encouraged to attend. Sponsored by Christian Photography, all workshops are included with admission price to Living History Farms.
The Ties That Bind: A Historic Quilt Show
September 29 – October 3
Thirty rarely seen historic quilts from the nationally recognized Living History Farms quilt collection will be on display in the Church of the Land along with historic clothing and household textiles. Children's hands-on activities include quilt block coloring and sewing cards.
Family Weekend: Harvest Fest
October 2 & 3
Visit our historic farms and master the techniques of handpicking corn. Take a horse-drawn wagon ride into the fields to watch working machinery used to harvest corn from 1910-1950. In town, enjoy the fruits of fall as you stir a copper kettle of apple butter, crank the cider press, and sample fresh apple fritters. Music, children’s games and crafts round out the fun.
Family Halloween Nights
October 21-24 and 28-31 from 5:30 – 8:30pm
Horse-drawn wagon rides, marshmallow roast, storytellers, scarecrow and jack-o-lantern displays delight all during this non-scary family event. Children aged 12 and under trick or treat through town, and free pop and popcorn for all. Prices: $5/person, $4.50 LHF members and pre-sold groups of 10 or more.
Farmstasia: A Haunted Hoedown, Saturday, October 16th, 2010
Farmstasia is a casually-elegant fundraising dinner/auction event, centered around the historic Flynn Barn and our modern Visitor Center. In this way, we combine a taste of Iowa’s rich agricultural heritage with the comforts of contemporary amenities. The 2010 Farmstasia theme is “Haunted Hoedown,” an anniversary-year echo of Living History Farms’ first fundraising event, held 40 years-ago. Gala attire is casual, with costumes encouraged. Proceeds from Farmstasia support Living History farms’ extensive
education and outreach programs, which serve more than 30,000 Iowa school children
annually.
Prairie Christmas
December 11, 12-4 pm
Enjoy a holiday open house with a prairie feel. The Tangen home will be decorated for the season and bustling with party preparations and music. Take a horse-drawn wagon ride to the General Store and the Church for an old fashioned holiday social with music, games, tree trimming and Santa Claus. Taffy pulls and children's crafts make this a festive afternoon on the prairie. The Marketplace and a special children's Santa's Workshop will be open for holiday shopping. Prices: $5/person, $4.50 LHF members and pre-sold groups of 10 or more.
