You have arrived at the only unit in the National Park Service dedicated to the tallgrass prairie ecosystem. Tallgrass prairie once covered a vast region that stretched from Mexico into Canada. Today, only a small fraction - perhaps less than four percent - of North America's native tallgrass prairie remains. The Kansas Flint Hills is home to the largest remnant of unbroken tallgrass prairie.
Formerly known as the Spring Hill / Z Bar Ranch, the preserve provides a rare opportunity to experience sweeping views and the close-up beauty of a tallgrass prairie. You may also learn of the American Indians who hunted here and the ranchers who later settled here.
Established by an act of Congress in 1996, the preserve is cooperatively managed through a unique public/private partnership between the National Park Service and the preserve's private landowner, The Nature Conservancy. In 1994, the National Park Trust purchased the 10,894-acre ranch in the hope that it would become a unit of the National Park System. In 2002, 32 acres, which included the historic ranch headquarters and the one-room school, were donated to the Federal government by the National Park Trust. In 2005, The Nature Conservancy purchased the private property from the Kansas Park Trust, which had recently purchased it from the National Park Trust.
The Nature Conservancy, the Kansas Park Trust, and the National Park Service are working together to achieve the vision of the preserve's general management plan.
For activities available at the preserve, please see the information posted to your right. Enjoy your visit to the preserve.
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