About the Danada Equestrian Center

The Dupage County Forest Preserve District

DuPage residents voted to create the Forest Preserve District in 1915 largely through the efforts of local women who had recently gained suffrage. At that time, the county consisted of farming communities, with a population of 38,000. The first preserve, York Woods, was acquired in 1917. By the 1930s, the District had preserves in each of the nine townships in the county. A group of 10 caretakers operated and maintained the preserves. They spent their time building fences, latrines, and gravel roads, and mowing grass and thistle.

The Great Depression prevented the District from furthering its land acquisition program, but it actually helped develop the preserves. Work relief programs such as the Civilian Conservation Corps provided the physical labor to construct many facilities. The older picnic shelters at Fullersburg Woods, Herrick Lake, and McDowell Grove are examples of their work.

Few acres were acquired during the 1940s and 1950s, but a growing population in the 1960s caused officials to begin an aggressive land acquisition campaign. The program was designed to create continuous bands of open space along major waterways and between communities. This approach has provided natural flood water storage areas along streams, habitat for wildlife, and a diverse array of outdoor recreational opportunities. The land acquisition campaign was tremendously successful, increasing the District's acreage from 1,798 acres two decades ago to over 23,000 today, thereby providing open spaces for the county's burgeoning population.

The philosophy that governs the Forest Preserve District is derived from our enabling statute, the Downstate Forest Preserve District Act. The act states that our mission is "...to acquire land for the purpose of protection and preserving the flora and fauna and scenic beauty...and to restore, restock, protect and preserve the natural lands together with the flora and fauna as nearly as may be in their natural state and condition for the purpose of education, pleasure, and recreation for the public."

The District works to fulfill its mission of conservation, education and recreation. As part of our conservation mandate, at least 90% of District holdings will remain in a relatively natural state to provide wildlife habitat, preserve the county's physical environment, and provide flood control and other urban benefits to all county residents and generations to come. A maximum of ten percent will be developed to provide trails, picnic areas, parking lots, and other amenities. Four special facilities - Danada Equestrian Center, Fullersburg Woods Environmental Education Center, Kline Creek Farm, and Willowbrook Wildlife Center - provide educational activities and exhibits for visitors. Preserve visitors can engage in a wide range of recreational activities, such as hiking, picnicking, and cross-country skiing.

For more information about the Forest Preserve of Dupage County, visit their Web site.