Louis Bromfield was a Mansfield, Ohio native who became friends with Ernest Hemingway, wrote a novel that became a movie, and used the proceeds to buy three Ohio farms, name them Malabar, and pursue his true passion: soil conservation and sustainable agriculture. Ohio’s only state park that’s a farm. A 32-room home where everything inside — the furniture, the wallpaper, the paint — is original. And at Christmas, every room has a tree. Hannah Gilbert, naturalist at Malabar Farm State Park, joins The Parks Podcast.
A note from Missy: Malabar Farm State Park is not far from my grandparents’ home, yet I’ve never been to it. I loved hearing about the history of the park and the role it plays in the region. Add the holiday festivities, and this is a great spot for your winter fun.
Episode Guest
Hannah Gilbert – Naturalist
Malabar Farm State Park (Ohio)
Park & Event Details
- Location: Between Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio
- History: Farm of author Louis Bromfield; friend of Ernest Hemingway; bought with proceeds from film adaptation of “The Rains Came” (1939); model for conservation agriculture
- Distinction: Only state park in Ohio that is a farm
- The Big House: 32 rooms; all original furniture, wallpaper, paint; original fireplace still functional
- Christmas Candlelight Tours: First two weekends of December; Fri–Sat 5–8 PM; Sun 1–4 PM; $6 per ticket at visitor center; rangers and volunteers stationed in each room
- Pet parrot Poncho: In the visitor center; homemade fudge in the gift shop
- Broader Ohio Parks events: Heritage Days at Malabar; Burr Oak Lodge family movie night; Lodge at Geneva Christmas Eve dinner; Maumee Bay winter carnival; Mohican Lodge breakfast with Santa (Saturdays and Sundays through Christmas)
- Ohio Winter Hike Series: Multiple parks, various themes, throughout winter; Hawking Hills SP January 17th
- First Day Hikes: Multiple Ohio parks participating January 1st
Episode Transcript
Winter in the Parks — Malabar Farm State Park, Ohio
The Parks Podcast, Episode 52 | Hannah Gilbert, Naturalist, Malabar Farm State Park
Note: This is a mini episode recorded around the 2025 holiday season. Event dates and tour details referenced are specific to that time. Visit ohiodnr.gov or the Malabar Farm State Park Facebook page for current programming.
The Only Farm in Ohio’s State Park System
Missy Rentz: As we celebrate winter in the parks, today we are visiting Malabar Farm State Park in Ohio. I’m thrilled to welcome Hannah Gilbert. Hannah is a naturalist at Malabar Farm State Park. Hannah, welcome to The Parks Podcast.
Hannah Gilbert: Hi. It’s nice to be here. I’m so excited to talk about Malabar and my experience.
Missy: I am too. Ohio Department of Natural Resources is hosting a ton of events throughout the state and you all at Malabar Farm State Park — you’re between Cleveland and Columbus. Think about the shape of Ohio: Columbus is in the center, Cleveland is in the northeast, and you’re smack dab in the middle there. Can you tell us a little bit about Malabar Farm?
Hannah: Yeah, absolutely. So first off, I just want to preface this with — I absolutely stink with love for this place. I grew up here. My family’s first family photos of me were here at Malabar Farm and I’ve gone to every single Heritage Days festival since I was born. So I know this place and I’m so fortunate to work here and do this kind of stuff. It’s so special to me. It holds such a special spot in my heart. There are so many things that happened here that you would go “what?!” when I tell you about them. We’re the only state park that’s a farm — which is crazy. The whole state of Ohio, we’re the only one that’s a farm. So way back in 1939, there was a very famous author named Louis Bromfield — he’s actually a Mansfield High School graduate, which is our high school around here. And he went off to do incredible things. He was pretty good friends with Ernest Hemingway and his wife. He wrote some really incredible books that focused on strong central women in his stories. One of the most famous ones actually got turned into a movie — it was called The Rains Came. And he took his proceeds from that movie to buy the three farms that now make up Malabar Farm, build the big house, and move his entire family back from France — where they lived in the 1920s — back here to Malabar Farm, to pursue his other passion of conservation. Taking from nature to then pump back into a farm in a holistic way almost, and brought back the nutrients to the soil here in Richland County, which is pretty cool.
Missy: Yeah, he was pretty amazing and ahead of his time, and it’s really great that Ohio has been able to take this property and feature it as part of its history. I really love that. Now the holiday season is coming up, and I think winter is an amazing time to visit parks — not only because incredible things happen in nature in winter, that whole hibernating, growing, preparing for another season. And I find that parks for holidays and winter are really good at creating programs that make it easy for people to experience a park in the winter. What are you doing at Malabar Farm this holiday season?
Christmas Candlelight Tours of the Big House
Hannah: Oh man. So we do the Christmas Candlelight Tours, which is the best time to experience the park for the first time — to experience the big house for the first time. The big house — it’s 32 rooms. It’s huge. Everything inside is original: furniture, wallpaper, paint.
Missy: That was his home.
Hannah: That was his home. Yep. Him and his wife and his kids. They lived there from 1939 until his passing in the fifties. It’s a beautiful place. It’s original. The fireplace still works, and it’s decked head to toe in Christmas decor — there’s like a Christmas tree in every room. And then we have volunteers and employees like me and people who are passionate about the local history and about Bromfield and his friends and his Hollywood connections stationed in all of the rooms. So you get to walk through at your own pace. You get to look at everything on the walls and on the bookshelves and read the little snippets, but also ask questions and have