Baldwin Woods Forest Preserve

We offer guided walks at least twice a year in this historic woodland, which is a year-round research site. In 2025, we began efforts to build a new public trail at the Rice Woodland tract of the Baldwin Woods site.

Prior to Euro-American settlement, the Baldwin Woods area encompassed about 3,700 acres of closed forest and open savanna. However, development of rural areas for agriculture and, in recent years, for suburban housing has greatly reduced the extent of native woodland. 

In 1980, a portion of the historic Baldwin Woods area was designated a National Natural Landmark in recognition of its importance to the cultural and ecological heritage of the U.S. The Baldwin Woods Forest Preserve protects a significant contiguous area within the designated landmark.

Scientific studies within the area are done with as little disturbance as possible so as not to damage the sensitive ecosystem. The KU Field Station preserves 396 contiguous acres of the Baldwin Woods ecosystem, in several tracts (Breidenthal, Rice, Wall, and the Forest Legacy Reserve acquired in 2015) in perpetuity.

Links

Forest tracts

The 90-acre Breidenthal Biological Reserve consists of 70 acres purchased in 1965 by KU Endowment, and subsequent purchases of 10 acres each in 1973 and 1974. The majority is relatively undisturbed eastern deciduous forest, although there are remnants of savanna habitats. A small headwater stream, a tributary of Coal Creek (Wakarusa River drainage), flows through the forest. In spring, the reserve is awash with spectacular ephemeral wildflowers, and we hold an annual spring tour here, weather permitting.

In 1972, the 80-acre Rice Woodland was purchased and deeded to The Nature Conservancy, which later transferred the title through restrictive deed to KU Endowment. The Ethel and Raymond F. Rice Foundation provided funds to secure this high-quality natural area. The majority of the Rice Woodland is relatively undisturbed eastern deciduous forest. Thirty-one species of trees and 21 species of shrubs and vines were recorded on the tract in a 1963 study—remarkably high species richness for native forests in the central United States.

The 32-acre Roy and Eleanor Wall Woods was acquired in 1974 by Roy and Eleanor Wall on behalf of The Nature Conservancy; a restrictive deed for the property was subsequently acquired by KU Endowment. The tract is high quality woodland.

In 2015, an additional 202 acres became part of the Baldwin Woods Forest Preserve when local landowners, working cooperatively with the Kansas Biological Survey & Center for Ecological Research, sold acreage below market value for the purpose of preserving it as part of the KU Field Station.

The acquisition of these lands was made possible through the assistance of several organizations:

  • The Conservation Fund worked in partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which provided access to mitigation funds from Enbridge Pipelines L.L.C. and TransCanada Keystone Pipeline, LP.
  • The Douglas County Heritage Conservation Council provided funding through a grant.
  • The Kansas Land Trust provided technical support.
  • KU Endowment holds a portion of the land in protection in perpetuity.
  • The remainder, which was identified by the Kansas Forest Service as having exceptional conservation value, was chosen as the first Legacy Forest in Kansas by the U.S. Forest Service. The Forest Legacy Program is funded by Congress through the Land and Water Conservation Fund. Our annual fall tours explore this part of the Preserve.