Tir na n'Og Farm

    The farm is located in Wagner Township in County Clayton, Iowa.  This region of Iowa is known for its rolling hills, hardwood forests, and steep rocky bluffs.  The topography results from a lack of glacial activity during the last of the Pleistocene glaciers which flattened the rest of the upper mid-west, and left us with beautiful place to live.

   The farm was first settled by Joseph Steiner, a German immigrant, sometime around 1848.  He built the brick farmhouse in 1858 in the middle of the 800+ acres he then owned.  Mr. Steiner sold off some of the land, and operated a grain and dairy farm on the rest.  The farm was sold to the Benson family in the late 1800's, and was occupied and operated by the Benson family until 2002, when they sold it to a neighbor.  The house, buildings and 12.5 acres of the farm were bought by the current owner (Paul Young) in 2003.  The house and outbuildings are undergoing a long process of refurbishing, repair and updating.

      Some of the Benson family c. 1900?

 The barn is a beautiful example of 19th century post and beam construction, and though it needs some work it is still in great shape and being used as a livestock barn.