The Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie was established in 1996 and is the first national tallgrass prairie in the country.  It is administered by the U.S. Forest Service, in cooperation with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and with the support of hundreds of volunteers and partner agencies, businesses, and organizations.  Part of the former Joliet Army Ammunition Plant, Midewin remained largely closed to the public while the Army cleaned up contamination remaining from decades of TNT manufacturing and packaging.

The Illinois Land Conservation Act (Public Law 104-106) created the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie, designated the transfer of 19,165 acres of land in Illinois from the U.S. Army to the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and mandates that Midewin be managed to meet four primary objectives:

1. To conserve, restore, and enhance the native populations and habitats of fish, wildlife, and plants.

2. To provide opportunities for scientific, environmental, and land use education and research.

3. To allow the continuation of existing agricultural uses of lands within Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie for the next 20 years, or for compatible resource management uses thereafter.

4. To provide recreational opportunities that are compatible with the above purposes.

The first land transfer from the Army to the Forest Service took place on March 10, 1997, and included 15,080 acres of land that was believed to be free from contamination.  Subsequent land acquisitions place the current size of Midewin at 15,454 acres.

A comprehensive Land and Resource Management Plan -- the Prairie Plan -- for Midewin was completed in 2002 and is available online.

Beginning in 2004, 6,400 acres of Midewin opened to the general public for nonmotorized recreation use.  Click here for more information about visiting Midewin.