HARTMAN RESERVE
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    • FIELD TRIPS >
      • PRE K - KINDERGARDEN
      • 1st - 2nd GRADE
      • 3rd - 4th GRADE
      • 5th GRADE and UP
    • EDUCATORS RESOURCES
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    • UPCOMING
    • YOUTH CAMPS >
      • SUMMER CAMPS
    • SPECIAL EVENTS >
      • FROSTY BUNS RACE SERIES
      • MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL
      • UNDER THE HARVEST MOON
    • PUBLIC PROGRAM SERIES >
      • TRAIL RX
      • FOREST BATHING
      • 2ND SUNDAY SPEAKER SERIES
  • RENTALS
    • COMMUNITY ROOM
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    • VOLUNTEER
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HARTMAN HISTORY

OUR STORY

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In 1938, John C. Hartman of the Waterloo Daily Courier helped the local YMCA purchase 56 acres of forested land. In the letter that accompanied his pledge to the YMCA, Hartman wrote, "The closer the young are kept to nature, the better and happier men and women they will become." Camp Hartman Reserve was used for residential camping and other programs until the early 1970s. In 1976, Black Hawk County Conservation Board purchased the land in order to establish an environmental education center.
Since our creation in 1976, Hartman Reserve Nature Center has been designated as an Iowa Watchable Wildlife Site and an Important Bird Area. Pileated woodpeckers, deer, river otter, turkeys, red-shouldered hawks, fox, vultures, and bald eagles are some of the wildlife you might see. We are a partner site of Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area. Hartman Bluff State Preserve is certified by the Iowa DNR Preserves Board to recognize the significance of a 46-acre tract of upland and lowland forest within the Nature Center.
CLICK HERE TO visit our online archives
History of Hartman reserve to year 2000 (video)
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ORIGINAL NATURE CENTER IN THE 1920's
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NEWSPAPER FROM 1975
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OUR MISSION
​

​Hartman Reserve Nature Center is dedicated to understanding our environment through education, recreation and community involvement and to stewardship of a unique natural area.
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CONTACT INFO

​Hartman Reserve Nature Center
657 Reserve Drive
Cedar Falls, Iowa 50613
Phone: (319)-277-2187
Fax: (319) 277-4420
NATURE CENTER WINTER HOURS
Monday - Friday: 8 am - 4:30 pm
Saturday: CLOSED
Sunday: CLOSED
​No cost to enter and enjoy the exhibits and library.
*Beginning February 1st, 2022, we will be open on Sundays from 1-5pm.
​
TRAILS
Open every day from
​sunrise to sunset. Free to use.

OUTDOOR-ACCESSIBLE RESTROOM
The restroom on the south side of the building is open every day from
​sunrise to sunset.
  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • HISTORY
    • WHAT WE ARE
    • VISION
    • STAFF
    • OUR PARTNERS
    • CONNECT
  • VISIT
    • NATURE CENTER HOURS
    • TRAILS
    • EXHIBITS
  • EDUCATION
    • FIELD TRIPS >
      • PRE K - KINDERGARDEN
      • 1st - 2nd GRADE
      • 3rd - 4th GRADE
      • 5th GRADE and UP
    • EDUCATORS RESOURCES
  • PROGRAMS
    • UPCOMING
    • YOUTH CAMPS >
      • SUMMER CAMPS
    • SPECIAL EVENTS >
      • FROSTY BUNS RACE SERIES
      • MAPLE SYRUP FESTIVAL
      • UNDER THE HARVEST MOON
    • PUBLIC PROGRAM SERIES >
      • TRAIL RX
      • FOREST BATHING
      • 2ND SUNDAY SPEAKER SERIES
  • RENTALS
    • COMMUNITY ROOM
    • BUCKLES BUILDING
    • SNOWSHOES
  • OPPORTUNITIES
    • BRICKS FOR BIRDS
    • DONATE
    • VOLUNTEER
    • INTERNSHIPS