Springdale Savanna

Fourteen acres of tall grass oak savanna, once dominant along the Illinois River Bluffs, has been restored inside Springdale Cemetery. Three-hundred-year-old trees provide a shady habitat in between large open areas of tall grasses, broad-leaved plants and shrubs. It is a natural community that developed with the recession of glaciers following the Pleistocene epoch 10,000 years ago. Similar conditions later greeted early French traders and explorers who came to Peoria in the 18th century.

The earliest reference to what may have been found in the savanna appears in Charles Ballance’s “1870: The History of Peoria, Illinois,” where he writes that “the march of improvement” has destroyed the natural landscape. Ballance commends the then-superintendent of Springdale Cemetery, Captain John H. Hall, and says he “has set apart a portion of that lovely place, which associates so much sadness and beauty, for the preservation of nature’s own flora.”

The Springdale savanna shelters many diverse and uncommon species. Thanks to hundreds of volunteer hours, the savanna has recovered some of its former glory. Further restoration of the native biological diversity continues.

In 2023, the Peoria Park District officially took ownership of the savanna and its surrounding wooded areas.  The acquisition ensures not only that the savanna will be spared from future development, but also that the public will have access to this ecological treasure. 

Our intent is that people will be able to visit the savanna for passive recreation, environmental education, and of course silent reflection. Over the past several decades, volunteers have put in countless hours restoring the savanna and keeping it in good ecological health. They have accomplished this through removing invasive species such as bittersweet and honeysuckle, and conducting prescribed burns. .