Springbrook Nature Center facts for kids
Springbrook Nature Center is a cool park and nature reserve in Fridley, Minnesota. It covers about 127 acres (that's like 51 football fields!). You can find a special building there, over three miles (5 km) of trails for hiking through woods and wetlands, and places to hang out. The main goal of Springbrook is to protect nature and help people explore it.
Lots of fun things happen at Springbrook all year round! They have many learning programs and community events. About 150,000 people visit the center each year. Also, once a month, scientists carefully catch and band birds there to study them.
History of Springbrook Nature Center
In 1970, the city of Fridley started buying land to create what would become the Springbrook Nature Center.
On July 18, 1986, a powerful tornado passed through Springbrook Nature Center. It stayed for about 16 minutes and destroyed thousands of very old trees and large areas of forest. A TV news helicopter from KARE 11 was flying nearby and filmed amazing pictures of the tornado from the sky.
A brand new building for visitors and learning was opened on July 30, 2016. The Springbrook Nature Center Foundation helped raise $5.5 million to build this new center.
The director, Siah St. Clair, worked at Springbrook for 35 years! She shared many photos for a book called A Field Guide to the Natural World of the Twin Cities, which came out in 2018.
