The land has been in the Martinek family since 1911, when Joseph Martinek purchased the property. In the 1980s, siblings Russell Friemel and Ardie Friemel Holsinger inherited the farm, and in 2021 they began protecting it for future generations.
The conservation became official this year through a donated conservation easement, a voluntary legal agreement that permanently limits future development while allowing the family to retain ownership and continue farming and managing the property.
The conservancy said the farm sits within a vulnerable stretch of the Colorado River basin where industrial surface mining, highway development, and oil and gas activity continue to reshape the surrounding landscape.
“Industrial surface mining, highway road-front development, and oil and gas extraction are recurring land uses across the surrounding landscape that threaten this region’s habitats, scenic open space, and water resources,” the conservancy said. “By permanently protecting these 470 acres, Martinek Farm becomes a lasting investment in the future of the Colorado River basin and a model for conserving the landscapes that remain.”
Ross Creek, a spring-fed waterway that flows year-round into an ecologically significant section of the Colorado River, runs through the property. Conservancy officials said the undeveloped creek corridor helps filter runoff, reduce erosion, improve water quality and provide habitat for wildlife.
Species found downstream include the blue sucker, Tampico pearly mussel, pimpleback mussel and Texas fawnsfoot mussel. The creek and ponds on the property also support fish including bass, cichlids and sunfish.
Nearly half of the farm’s soils qualify as Farmland of Statewide Importance, meaning they are especially valuable for producing crops, forage and livestock. The property also contains a mix of oak savannah, prairie grasslands, woodlands, wetlands and bottomland forests that support a wide variety of native plants and animals.
The land’s significance extends beyond its natural resources. Martinek Farm contains archaeological sites dating from the Late Paleoindian through Late Archaic periods, as well as ties to early Texas settlement.
In 2025, the Texas Historical Commission designated part of the property as a State Archeological Landmark, providing additional protection for its cultural resources.