Facilities

Avondale, Pa.: Headquarters for Temperate Freshwater Research, Education, and Watershed Restoration

Campus History

Stroud Water Research Center’s campus in Avondale, Pennsylvania, is a place of contrasts — rustic in appearance yet sophisticated in operation, filled with art and devoted to science. It evokes a sense of warmth and comfort that is an ideal climate for our flourishing research. Since 1967, we have grown into a modern, well-equipped campus situated on a country road and overlooking White Clay Creek, a nationally designated Wild and Scenic River.

Campus Highlights

Moorhead Environmental Complex

The Moorhead Environmental Complex was added to the Avondale campus in 2012, adding new space for education and public outreach in a state-of-the-art “green building.” This LEED^® Platinum building was built as a direct and proactive way to support the Stroud Center’s environmental education and public outreach. Its construction made all elements of the water cycle more sustainable for the entire campus.

Historic Cabin

A historic cabin, believed to date from between 1710 and 1740, sits adjacent to the Stroud Center’s main building, which is also a historic structure — a bank barn dating back to the early 1800s. The cabin is a vital component of the Stroud Center campus, offering a space to inspire and foster collaboration among students and scientists, driving freshwater research, environmental education, and watershed restoration into the future. First restored in 1967, a second restoration launched in 2026.

Outdoor Classroom

Located just a short walk upstream from our main building, the outdoor classroom includes rustic-looking benches, lab tables, and an education kiosk that seem to naturally grow out of the woodland setting. It’s a quiet place, equally suited to reflection and investigating the outdoor environment that keeps White Clay Creek clean and healthy.

Área de Conservación Guanacaste, Costa Rica: Headquarters for Tropical Freshwater Systems Research

Maritza Biological Station

In 1989, Stroud Water Research Center helped establish the Maritza Biological Station in the Área de Conservación Guanacaste of Costa Rica. Located at the base of the Orosí Volcano in the northwest corner of the country, the station is the Stroud Center’s headquarters for the study of tropical ecosystems. It also serves as an information source for Latin American scientists and land managers who are interested in implementing conservation strategies in tropical streams and watersheds.