Johnson County Conservation Board announces acquisition of the Two Horse Farm

Edited Release
09/14/22

The Johnson County Conservation Board has acquired 83 acres of property known locally as the Two Horse Farm.

In a release from the county on Monday, the property was acquired through a donation and purchase agreement through the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and Erin and Brian Melloy, former owners of the property.

The property is adjacent on two sides to the US Army Corps of Engineers – Coralville Lake Project.  It was acquired through a generous donation from the Melloy’s, combined with funds from the State of Iowa REAP Grant Program and the Johnson County Conservation Bond fund.

The property includes 64 acres of forest, 15.5 acres of reconstructed prairie, and a 3.5-acre farmstead. The site includes 364 species of plants including at least 14 rare and notable species, and preserves the prairie-woodland viewshed seen from Coralville Lake or Sugar Bottom Recreation Area trails.

This project also includes an additional 7 acres of prairie that the Melloy family has gifted to the Iowa Tribe of Kansas and Nebraska. This donation provides a piece of land through which the Ioway people can reconnect, both physically and spiritually, to their ancestral homeland. Currently, the Iowa Tribe has no land holdings in the state of Iowa.

The preserved and restored 1890s-era farmhouse on the farmstead is surrounded by English gardens with many native plant species. The original farmhouse will eventually be used as office space for county conservation educators and management staff. The board also plans to rent the 1992 addition to the farmstead to families or organized groups for retreats and week-long visits.

The barn on the property is currently being used by the wildlife-rescue non-profit organization RARE, and provides flight pens for rehabilitating large birds of prey; these and several permanently injured birds are housed in a circular open-air grain-bin-sized pen at the site.

It may take 1-2 years to get the property fully adapted to public use.  This will include signage, a new parking area and latrine or restroom facility.

For more information about the site please contact officials with Johnson County Conservation at 319-645-2315.