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Visitor tip
Catch the last tractor cart ride to the farms before 2:30pm - this is essential for reaching the distant farm exhibits. Plan your visit timing around this cutoff to ensure you can access all locations.
Visitor tip
Seek out interactive demonstrations with the knowledgeable interpreters and guides throughout the site (like the printing shop experience mentioned in reviews). These hands-on interactions where staff embody their historical roles are highlighted as the best part of the 'living history' experience.
About Living History Farms
Outdoor agricultural-history museum. Iowa farming-history exhibits on a 500-acre site with an 1875 village & educational programs.
Quick Facts
- Type
- Interactive outdoor history museum
- Location
- Urbandale, Iowa
- Size
- 500-acre open-air museum
- History Span
- 300 years of Midwestern rural heritage
- Hours
- Tuesday-Saturday 9am-4pm
What visitors say
From the Ioway Indian Farm to the animals at the Pioneer Farm and the many buildings throughout the Historic Town, this is truly an incredible historical experience. The guides and historic interpreters are very knowledgeable and bring…
We had a wonderful time visiting the farm but the best part was Kirk in the printing shop. He was very educational and walked us through all the features of the shop and presses and we made a printed recipe. He really did what a “living…
It was a fun day out with kids from school. I've been here many times over the years. They should do a few things to make it a more lively. Throw a banjo player or just something to keep spirits a little more up there.
From 1,104 Google reviews
Did You Know?
- The museum spans 500 acres and features four distinct historical time periods: 1700 Ioway Indian Farm, 1850 Pioneer Farm, 1876 Town of Walnut Hill, and 1900 Horse-Powered Farm, allowing visitors to journey through 200 years of agricultural history
- Living History Farms uses on-site interpreters and historians who embody their time periods to deliver educational experiences, with review mentions highlighting staff expertise in bringing history to life through hands-on demonstrations like printing shop activities
- The attraction offers tractor cart rides to farms as a primary visitor experience, with the last cart departing at 2:30pm daily, making this a signature feature mentioned frequently in visitor reviews
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