FRANK RATCLIFF MEMORIAL FOREST
This fifty-seven acre hardwood forest, located near North Vernon, is filled with tree species such as beech, sugar maple, tulip, basswood, red oak, and sycamore. The forest floor contains Christmas fern, as well as at least two species of clubmoss (Lycopodium spp.), primitive non-flowering plants.
The property was bequeathed to the Land Trust by Ruth Ratcliff, in memory of her husband Frank Ratcliff. It is comprised of two parcels: twenty acres north of County Road 70 South, and thirty-seven acres south. Surrounding a pond on the northern portion of the property is a thick plantation of eastern white pine, planted as part of reforestation efforts by the Ratcliff family.
The southern portion contains a stream with a New Albany shale bottom, a smooth black rock which was formed by muddy sediments that flowed here from the Appalachian uplift 250 million years ago - long before glaciers arrived.
Directions to Ratcliff Forest from North Vernon: Take US-50 west to County Road 265 W. Turn left (south). Turn left at County Road 70 S. The property will be less than a half mile ahead on both sides of the road. The entrance is not marked, but look for a double gate on the north side of the road. Click here for an aerial map of the property.
Central Indiana Land Trust is a member of The Land Trust Alliance, the national organization of land trusts.