Jennings Environmental Education Center facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Jennings Environmental Education Center |
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IUCN Category III (Natural Monument)
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One of the few prairies in Pennsylvania is found at Jennings Environmental Education Center
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 Jennings Environmental Education Center
Location in Pennsylvania
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| Location | Brady, Butler, Pennsylvania, United States |
| Area | 300 acres (120 ha) |
| Elevation | 1,197 ft (365 m) |
| Established | 1979 |
| Governing body | Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources |
| Website | Jennings Environmental Education Center |
The Jennings Environmental Education Center is a special park in Pennsylvania. It covers 300 acres (about 1.2 square kilometers). This park is found in Butler County, Pennsylvania, near the town of Butler. You can find it about 12 miles (19 km) north of Butler, right along Pennsylvania Route 528.
It's famous for having a rare 20-acre (8.1 ha) prairie. This is the only prairie ecosystem in Pennsylvania that is protected for everyone to visit! A stream called Big Run flows through the center. The park also shares a border with Moraine State Park to the south. The Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) has even called Jennings one of the "25 Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks."
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Learning About Nature at Jennings
The main goal of Jennings Environmental Education Center is to teach people about the environment. They especially focus on students from nearby schools and colleges. Jennings offers many chances for students and teachers to learn hands-on. They use a "discovery and problem solving" way of teaching.
- Programs for Everyone: Jennings has lots of programs for the public all year long. Many of these programs are free!
- Special Events: Some events, like the National Public Lands Day volunteer project, need you to sign up beforehand.
- Celebrate the Bloom: Every year, the center holds a "Celebrate the Bloom" festival. This happens when the beautiful blazing star flowers are at their peak bloom. This festival started in 2013.
The Special Prairie Habitat
Prairies are very rare in Pennsylvania. You usually find them much further west, in states like Ohio and Indiana, stretching all the way to the Rocky Mountains. The prairie at Jennings Environmental Education Center is the only protected prairie in Pennsylvania.
- Unique Plants: This prairie is a special home for plants that only grow in prairies.
- Endangered Animals: It also protects the endangered massasauga rattlesnake.
- Protecting Plants: Jennings Environmental Education Center was the very first state park created to protect an endangered plant, which is the blazing star flower.
A Look Back in Time: History of Jennings
People first arrived in the Jennings area almost 15,000 years ago. These early people, called Paleo-Indians, followed the melting glaciers after the ice age. They were hunting large animals like woolly mammoths and giant ground sloths. It's thought that hunting too many of these animals led to their disappearance.
Native American Life
By the late 1500s, the Iroquois people settled in this area. They started to farm the land. They used fire to clear areas for their farms. This might have helped keep the prairie environment alive, which we see at Jennings today.
European Settlers and Important Paths
European pioneers from the Thirteen Colonies and New France traveled through this region. They used an old Native American path called the Venango Path. Parts of this path are now covered by Pennsylvania Route 528. This trail went from Pittsburgh to Franklin, Pennsylvania. Famous people like Tecumseh, the Marquis de LaFayette, and George Washington used this path.
The area wasn't heavily settled until the 1800s. The first settlers cut down trees and started farming. But the land wasn't great for farming. Soon, people found other ways to use the land. They discovered coal, and mining became a big business in Western Pennsylvania.
Who Was Dr. Otto Emery Jennings?
Jennings Environmental Education Center is named after Dr. Otto Emery Jennings. He was a famous botanist, someone who studies plants. He traveled all over Pennsylvania looking for rare plant species. In 1905, he discovered the prairie here. He played a big part in getting the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy to buy and protect this land. Dr. Jennings made sure the area would be saved for future generations to enjoy and learn from. It became a nature reserve in 1952, and the Jennings Environmental Education Center was officially created in 1979.
Nearby Historical Sites
Right across Route 8 from the park is the Old Stone House. Slippery Rock University owns and runs this house. It was a tavern and inn from 1822 until the mid-1800s. George Washington and Christopher Gist also passed through this area in 1753. They were on an important trip to Fort LeBoeuf before the French and Indian War. You can find signs and information about Washington's Trail at Jennings and the Old Stone House. The Old Stone House is open on weekends for tours and programs. The old Foltz School House is also on Jennings property and is being fixed up.
Other State Parks Nearby
Here are some other state parks within 30 miles (48 km) of Jennings Environmental Education Center:
