The museum’s 30-acre campus is developed as the Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park. The park celebrates the Danish immigrant who designed elements of the Chicago Park system and who worked with Frank Lloyd Wright. Jensen pioneered “the prairie school” of landscape architecture that focused attention on using native plantings to emulate natural environments. This outdoor venue provides picturesque landscaping, picnic areas, walkways, and outdoor interpretive stations for a more meaningful museum experience.

The Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park is open for public use. A paved pedestrian path, the Friend’s Trail, runs through the park to connect the museum’s main building with Bedstemor’s House in the heart of Elk Horn.

Major support for the Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park is provided by Iowa Great Places. 

Enjoy a commanding view of the lush Iowa hills and 30 acres of recreated prairie surrounding the Museum of Danish America in the Jens Jensen Prairie Landscape Park. Designed in 2011 and installed in 2012, the park is intended to celebrate the life and work of Jens Jensen, a Danish immigrant who became one of America’s leading landscape architects. A colleague of Frank Lloyd Wright, Jensen pioneered the “Prairie School” of landscape architecture and is celebrated today as an early advocate for native plants and the conservation of natural spaces.

By restoring native plant life and hydrology, the park aims to provide wildlife and pollinator habitat and to increase plant diversity. It also has the potential to emulate an Iowa prairie in the manner that homesteaders may have encountered when they first settled here, before all of the changes that those same homesteaders brought.

Park Features

Native plants, outdoor exhibits, innovative Danish-designed outdoor fitness equipment, council rings, and picnic areas! 

Restoring and maintaining a prairie ecosystem requires a lot of work. You may notice mowed, burned, or chemically treated areas in the park, depending on the time of year; know that these are part of an effort to prevent the young prairie from being overtaken before it has the chance to establish itself. 

See our summer 2017 Purple Martin colony here.

Green Roof 

The prairie ecosystem continues atop the Cecilia Christensen Curatorial Center just west of the museum entrance. A green roof planted with native grasses and forbs maximizes energy efficiency and increases the thermal barrier between the outdoor environment and artifact storage areas. Explore the roof via the paved walkway and informational signage that describes some of the plant life, as well as the roof’s construction.

Friends Walk

Breathe in the fresh western Iowa air on our 0.6-mile paved pedestrian path that runs through the park and connects the museum’s main building with Bedstemor’s House. Along this path, you may notice that the prairie looks a bit different from the prairie near Jens Dixen’s cabin. These prairies were seeded at different times and with different mixes. The East Council Ring is located here. 

Council Rings

The Council Rings, modeled on Jensen’s designs, offer a place for visitors to come together and relax. Each is equipped with a fire pit to gather around, which are used on Sankt Hans Aften.

Outdoor Fitness Equipment

The fitness equipment installed here was designed and made in Denmark. In keeping with Jensen’s vision for public parks, this “outdoor room” offers an opportunity to enjoy an activity in nature that would otherwise take place in an indoor center.

Wetland Restoration

The wetland was restored by removing the drain tiles that had previously been used by farmers to drain excess water from the soil. A berm with a water control structure allows museum staff to manage the water levels. The wetland provides habitat for frogs, semiaquatic mammals such as muskrats, and waterfowl and shorebirds such as killdeer.

Commemorative Brick Plaza

As part of the park, the museum has installed a commemorative brick plaza. The bricks may honor the memory of a loved one, celebrate a special occasion or recognize a club or a business. Three sizes of bricks are currently available for engraving. To place an order please click here.

Experience the Prairie

For birders and nature lovers, the prairie is a constantly changing landscape. From migrating songbirds and raptors to grasses shifting with the wind and seasonal blooms, every visit or viewing offers something new. 

Binocular Loan Program

Visiting in person? Stop by the front desk to borrow binoculars or field guides to enhance your walk through the prairie. Whether you’re an experienced birder or just starting to notice how much life is tucked into the native tallgrasses of the prairie, the binocular loan program makes it easier to slow down, look closer, and spot what you might otherwise miss. 

Live Stream

For those who can’t make the trip, our new live camera feed offers real-time views of the prairie landscape, day and night. Watch birds move through the park, observe changing light and weather, or simply enjoy a quiet moment connected to the land—no matter where you are. Click here to access the live stream.