Print this page (pdf file)

In 1969, the National Park Service recognized this area as a National Natural Landmark and designated it as a Natural and Scientific area in 1987. The wetlands provide 573 acres of habitat for 219 species of birds, like the Marsh Wren and Pileated Woodpecker.

There are also 35 species of amphibians and reptiles, 13 species of fish, 22 species of mammals and 333 species of plants such as the biden. The biden provides a source of food for the Monarch butterfly which is one of many species for whom the Haskell Baker Wetlands provide a resting place during migration.

These wetlands showcase not only a vast array of wildlife but also a history lesson of U.S. government policies toward Native Americans. The wetlands were once drained to grow food for conscripted Indian children who were taught to farm here as part of their forced assimilation.

When the farming project failed, the land was abandoned and slowly reverted back to wetlands and was later deeded to the current steward, Baker University 17 miles southeast of the area. The wetlands, once a site of agony, are now a sacred place to many tribes and local HINU students who come to the area to pray and find comfort.

Haskell Baker Wetlands is the largest and closest wild place to the city of Lawrence, and very few Kansas cities have a wilderness area accessible so close to home. The only other open space in the county is farmland, quickly falling under the bulldozers of sprawl. This creeping wave of development is now rolling towards the Haskell Baker Wetlands with the proposed construction of the eastern leg of the South Lawrence Trafficway — an eight-lane highway.

In 2003, The US Army Corps of Engineers granted a permit to dredge and fill 77 acres of the northern wetlands area adjacent to HINU's acreage to make way for the highway construction. This swath of pavement would jeopardize the wetlands, their wildlife inhabitants, the sacred sites and any potential national historic sites.

The Sierra Club has joined forces with other local conservation groups and tribes to oppose the highway's placement. To learn more contact Carey Maynard-Moody at careymm@ixks.com.