The Country Life Center location of The Wallace Centers of Iowa is the birthplace farm of Henry A. Wallace, born in 1888. He served the nation as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture from 1933 to 1941, U.S. Vice President from 1941 to 1945, and U.S. Secretary of Commerce from 1945 to 1946. Earlier in his career, he founded seed corn company Pioneer Hi-Bred in 1926 and was an editor at Wallaces' Farmer magazine. In 1999, The Des Moines Register named Wallace the "Most Influential Iowan of the 20th Century."
The birthplace farm includes:
- 40 acres of the original Wallace farm
- Restored House
- Gathering Barn
- Restored Iowa Prairie and Pond
- Sculpture Walking Path
- Themed Flower Gardens
- Orchard and Produce Gardens, and
- The Gathering Table Cafe, Gift Shop and Market
Walk around the farm and enjoy the history and landscape that helped shape the life of one of Iowa's most important native sons.
