Finding Birds in Guilford County © 2018 Dennis Burnette
IV-C3. Guilford County Farm Park
|
7315 Howerton Road, Elon, North Carolina 27244
http://www.guilfordcountync.gov/our-county/county-parks/county-farm Administrator: Guilford County Parks, 301 West Market Street, Greensboro, NC 27401 336-641-7275 http://www.guilfordcountync.gov/our-county/county-parks Hours of operation: There are no operating hours published for this site but generally other nature preserve of this type in the county are open from sunrise to sunset. Contact the County for up to date information.
|
Directions
|
GPS coordinates: N 36° 08.273’ W 079° 32.649’
Directions: This site is in the far northeastern corner of the county. In fact, about 100 acres are in the adjacent county, Alamance. To reach the site, take I-40/I-85 east from Greensboro to Exit 138 for NC 61 toward Gibsonville and Whitsett. Exit 138 is about 11 miles east of the US 29 intersection in Greensboro. Take the ramp and go north on NC 61 about 5 miles to County Farm Road. Turn right and go 1.2 miles. Turn right onto Howerton Road. The entrance to the property is about a half mile on the left (north) side of the road. |
Description
Click the image to open a site map in a new window.
The Guilford County Farm once was a prison farm but is no longer used for its historical purpose. It now is a new park that has been designated as a nature area or what the county refers to as a “passive park.” It was recently opened to the public for low impact activities including birding. The 806-acre property, 720 acres now operated by the Guilford County Facilities and Parks Department,features a pond, woodlands, farm fields, and large meadows, the latter especially attractive to Eastern Meadowlarks and other grassland birds. Some hiking trails already are available, a portion of which are part of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. County staff members report that 150 species of birds have been recorded.
The prison farm opened in 1935 with the idea that the inmates would work on the farm. The stone prison building was built by inmates, who used rocks that were collected from the nearby farm fields. The farm remained in use by the county as a prison facility until 2015. Although it no longer is a county prison, farming still occurs on the property through leases. In addition, there are active greenhouses in use. County officials reportedly intend to use the property in the future for what they term “event opportunities.”
Finding Birds in Guilford County © 2018 Dennis Burnette
The prison farm opened in 1935 with the idea that the inmates would work on the farm. The stone prison building was built by inmates, who used rocks that were collected from the nearby farm fields. The farm remained in use by the county as a prison facility until 2015. Although it no longer is a county prison, farming still occurs on the property through leases. In addition, there are active greenhouses in use. County officials reportedly intend to use the property in the future for what they term “event opportunities.”
Finding Birds in Guilford County © 2018 Dennis Burnette