 |
| Chellberg Farmhouse at Indiana Dunes National Park, NPS photo. |
 |
| Chellberg Farm Trail map. NPS. |
The 1.7-miles round trip described here is the northern segment of the rustic Bailly Homestead/Chellberg Farm Trail. A variety of other historical places – including the Bailly homestead and the Bailly cemetery – are nearby.
To reach the trailhead, from Chicago go east on U.S. Hwy. 12 or from Michigan City, Ind., head west on the same road. In the Porter, Ind., area, turn east onto Oak Hill Road/County Road 1350 N then right/south onto Howell Road. Park in the Mnoké Prairie lot across the road from the entry to the Indiana Dunes Environmental Learning Center.
Swedish immigrants
The trail heads east from the lot. In 0.2 miles, you’ll reach one of the many loops in the Baily/Chellberg Trails System. Go left/north onto the loop, which passes through a peaceful forest of maple, beech, basswood and oak trees.
During the mid-1800s until the Great Depression, this area of Indiana – known as Baillytown –attracted a number of Swedish immigrants, who formed a close-knit community. Among them was the Kjellberg family, who emigrated to the United States in 1863.
At 0.5 miles from the trailhead, the trail reaches a junction that connects to the Bailly Cemetery and the Little Calumet River Trail. Continue to the Chellberg Farm by going straight-right/east.
Just six years after arriving in America, the Kjellbergs bought the 80-acre property now known as the Chellberg Farm. They paid a mere $12 an acre.
The trail soon curves south then east again. In 0.8 miles from the trailhead, it reaches the historic Chellberg Farm.
Historic farm buildings
Several historic buildings can be explored on the homestead.
Among the most popular of them is the farmhouse. Built in 1885, its folk Victorian style was common across the United States at the time. The red brick facade is made of porter brick, which was created from nearby clay.
The barn is slightly older than the farmhouse. Constructed sometime during the 1870s, it is nearly 51 feet long by 25 feet wide and 25 feet tall. A three-bay structure with gabled roof, several improvements were made to it over the years, including the addition of a silo in 1917 and a concrete floor in 1938.
Two other common farm buildings of the era that still exist on the site are the corncrib and the granary. The Kjellbergs (or Chellbergs, as they became known) over the generations used several types of corncribs; the one now standing was built in 1941. The granary is the two-story, wooden building west of the farmhouse.
Also on the property is a maple sugar camp set up in the 1930s that is still used today. Every year in early March, the national park hosts a Maple Sugar Time festival in which visitors can tap their own syrup. Indiana Dunes is the only national park that makes maple syrup.
After taking in the historic sights, retrace your steps to the parking lot.
