Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area •Affiliated with the National Park Service •Established by Congress in 1996 •To tell the story of American agriculture •Building partnerships to tell the story •Assisting partners through grants program •Brochures, signage & website for the visitor •Assisting tour operators in creating tours
37 Counties, 20,000 Square Miles
95 Partner Sites •Museums •Farms •Industries •Natural Areas
Hayden Prairie
Effigy Mounds National Monument
Upper Mississippi River Wildlife Refuge
Living an Iowa Farm Experience “LIFE” Tours Group Travel Program •Locating farms & businesses •Creating itineraries •Attending industry marketplaces •Booking sites & attractions •Providing maps and escort notes
Touring restored immigrant farm at Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum
National Mississippi River Museum at Dubuque
Tour of Hawkeye Buffalo Ranch with costumed interpreter
Dan McFarland performs a Native American ceremony for group
Group tours milking parlor at a dairy where 1000 cows are milked.
Farmer Julie Miller (r.) explains her and husband’s 60-cow dairy
Kevin Miller explains different cattle feed rations to visitors.
Pattison Brothers Grain Terminal at Clayton in former silica mine
Watching a barge move through Lock & Dam #10 on the Mississippi.
Farmer Dick Jensen gives an ecology lesson on his farm’s nature trail.
Group checking out sustainable farming operation in Zearing
Motorcoach Travel • Reduces fuel per person usage. • Offers experiences not available to travelers in personal vehicles. • Offers opportunity for group discussion of educational travel experiences.
Motorcoach Travel Economic Impact •Overnight coach leaves $5,094 to $11,264 in a destination’s economy •$15 per person spending at restaurants •$35 per person spending at retail outlets •$268 per person spending at hotels $35 per person spending at attractions
Source: American Bus Association
For More Information‌
www.silosandsmokestacks.org or call Peter Jorgensen at 563-387-0305