O'Brien Prairie

Discover O'Brien Prairie in LeMars

This 40-acre black soil virgin prairie is situated in the heart of the farming region of Plymouth County. These native tall grasses and flowers survived through the efforts of Erma O’Brien. Her heirs, in order to protect the prairie and make a lasting memorial, donated the prairie to the Plymouth County Conservation Board. The prairie is open to hiking, hunting and enjoyment of wildflowers. It is a great place for photographers and native prairie enthusiasts. O’Brien Prairie was donated to Plymouth County in 1988, when Wayne Simington inherited the land from the Erma O’Brien estate. The land originally came into the O’Brien family sometime between the Civil War and World War I. If you take a walk through to the prairie, it is likely that you could see between 50 and 100 different species of forbs (wildflowers) and grasses.