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Ledges History Series: Ada Hayden
Often at the Ledges, visitors encounter historical remnants of days gone by. These relics all
represent a little bit of history still alive in the park. The Ledges History Series focuses on these
remnants and provides insight into the people, places, and land that help tell the story of this
unique state park.
Born near Ames in 1884, Ada Hayden was influential in prairie preservation in Iowa. She
studied as one of Louis Pammel’s protégés at Iowa State, then going on to earn her Master’s
degree at Washington University in St. Louis. Hayden returned to Iowa State to study under
Pammel, where she became the first female to earn a doctorate degree at Iowa State. Hayden
then taught Botany at Iowa State until her death in 1950. Ada Hayden’s main career focus was
on prairie preservation and establishment.
As you hike to and from this cache, marvel at the expanse of the native prairie right here in
Ledges. In fact it’s documented that this prairie is the oldest restored prairie in the state of
Iowa. It was restored to native prairie in 1949, hand seeded by Ada Hayden herself along with
J. Aikman and M. Tarr.
