Wisconsin Barns:
Anchoring Our Past — Building Our Future
Barns are one of the most recognizable
symbols of Wisconsin and also one of the most endangered.
Barns tell the story of the various immigrant experiences
and the changes in agricultural practices through time.
This poster shows a small cross section of the great
diversity of barns in Wisconsin, true architectural
and cultural treasures. Profits from the sale of these
posters will go towards a variety of barn preservation
programs and activities. The poster measures 24 inches
wide by 36 inches tall
and can be yours at a cost of $10 plus $4.95 for postage
and handling.
Ordering
To order the Wisconsin Barns poster, go
to our store, or send the following information and a check
for $14.95 to the address below.
Name ______________________________________
Address ____________________________________
City, State, Zip ______________________________
Please send your check to:
Stonefield
PO Box 125
Cassville, Wisconsin 53806-0125
Make check payable to: Stonefield
Below is information about the 13 Barns that are featured on the Wisconsin Barns: Anchoring Our Past-Building Our Future Poster
1. Governor Nelson Dewey Barn, 1870
Stonefield
Cassville, Wisconsin
Historical Background: The horsebarn is in two sections.
The original front section was constructed by Governor
Nelson Dewey, and the rear section was constructed
by Walter Cass Newberry. The Dewey section (circa
1868) is a rough stone section in the Gothic Revival
style. The Newberry section is similar in construction
materials but lacks the stylistic details of the Dewey
section. The Gothic Revival barn was a part of Nelson
Dewey's original Downingesque estate. During Newberry's
tenure, the barn was used as part of his farm operation.
Historical Significance: The horsebarn is historically significant because it was part of Nelson Dewey's gentleman-farmer estate. Dewey, Wisconsin's first governor, attempted to become an important local speculator and businessman after his term in public office. Stonefield was to be his "homestead" after a career which led him to many parts of the state. While Dewey's political career was over, the farm was his attempt to create an estate worthy of an important local figure and retired governor. Dewey seemed to be greatly influenced by A.J. Downing's books in his personal library. His estate, as a whole, represented many of Downing's ideas of how a gentleman farmer should live. The horsebarn, because it is part of this Gothic ideal, is significant for its association with Dewey and his attempt to create a romantic farm operation in southwestern Wisconsin. (From the National Register of Historic Places nomination form)
2. Gambrel Barn
Sauk County, Wisconsin
3. Bank Barn
Stonefield
Cassville, Wisconsin
4. Tobacco Barn
Rock County, Wisconsin
5. Round Barn
Vernon County, Wisconsin
6. Koepsel Stable, 1855
Old World Wisconsin
Eagle, Wisconsin
The Christian Koepsel barn, originally built in the town of Lebanon
in Dodge County (circa 1855), is an excellent example
of a Pomeranian forebay stable. Virtually identical
to those constructed in the Baltic region, it features
half-timber or Fachwerk construction capped with a
thatched roof. Natives of Arnsberg in Kreis Greifenberg,
the Koepsel family used the stable to shelter animals
on the lower level and hay under the upper loft. The
restored stable now graces the 1860 Pomeranian farmstead exhibit at
Old World Wisconsin.
7. University of Wisconsin-Madison Dairy Barn,
circa 1905
University of Wisconsin
Madison, Wisconsin
In 1895 as a result of lobbying on the part of dean of agriculture
William Henry, the state Legislature appropriated $5,000
for the construction of a dairy barn for the university
experimental station. Dean Henry felt, based on his
examination of barns at other colleges, that this amount
would not only build a barn suitable to the kind of
instruction and research envisioned for the university.
Henry decided to hold off on construction, and in 1897
a further appropriation was made and Henry began to
plan the new barn. Henry employed J. T. W. Jennings,
a Chicago architect, who had already designed King
Hall and the Agricultural Heating Station. The interior
layout of the barn was done by members of the faculty
and staff, particularly by Franklin Hiram King, whose
developments of farm building ventilation and the use
of the tower silo have become standard practice throughout
the world. Construction was begun in 1897, and the
building was finished in time for classes in the fall
of 1898 at a total cost of about $19,000. The contractor
was J. H. Stark. Jennings designed the building's exterior
to emulate the style of barns in Normandy. The main
building was 50 feet by 96 feet, three stories high
above a high basement.
Stable barns projected toward the south from the east and west ends
of the main barn. Between the two stables and connected
to the main barn was a two-story stock judging barn.
The fact that the barn was lighted with electricity
in that long-ago day caused amazed comment. Other features
of the building were an office and apartment for the
director, and a long steel ramp on the west side, navigable
by teams of horses from the ground to the hay loft
on the third floor. These features have been mostly
lost in the last 100 years. Much other detail has also
been lost. The original slate roof has been replaced
with asphalt shingles.
The silo on the northeast corner is one of professor
King's first tower silos, was cylindrical brick, plastered
on the inside, 18 feet in diameter and 30 feet tall,
and was surmounted by a large water tank which supplied
water to all the farm buildings. In those days of experimentation
and suspicion on the part of farmers toward their work,
Henry and King would no doubt be amazed and delighted
to hear the present caretaker of the building refer
casually to it as the "little
silo." The
little silo is no longer in use. The silo, in 1898,
was an experiment in which cut corn was matured in
the silo, then fed as ensilage to the stock. The success
of the experiment is obvious to anyone traveling in
Wisconsin or any other farming area. The biggest difference
is that modern silos are very much larger.
The silo is only one way in which the UW-Madison Dairy Barn served
as a model to farmers across the country. In 1907 a
series of single plant feeding experiments on cattle
by Elmer McCollum, which led to the discovery of vitamin
A in 1913 and revolutionized agricultural nutrition.
Testing of early models of milking machines were carried out
here on a special herd.
The walls of the upper levels are noticeably bulged outwards as the
result of a century of loading and unloading 60-ton
crops of hay. Two flanking barns were added to the
barn complex some time between 1908 and 1942. A building
report to the university's Board of Regents in 1946
recommended that the barn be torn down and replaced.
The Dairy Barn is still in use for cattle and goat
raising and experimentation, but those functions are
gradually being shifted to more modern facilities on
campus. It is hoped that this handsome and significant
piece of Wisconsin history can be maintained
in good condition and stand for another century,
a monument to men who believed that farming could benefit
from research and instruction.
On April 5, 2005, Secretary of the Interior Gail Norton designated
the UW Dairy Barn a National Historic Landmark.
All National Historic Landmarks are included on the
National Park Service list of National Historic Places.
8. Hoard's Dairyman Farm Barn, 1906
Fort Actkinson, Wisconsin
9. Lutze Housebarn, 1849
Cleveland, Wisconsin
The Lutze Housebarn, built in 1849, is listed on the National
Register of Historic Places and is of national significance.
It is the only known, fachwerk, half-timber housebarn
in the United States. Built by Gottlieb and Fredricka
Lutze, the east end of the building housed family quarters
and the west end housed animals. Cooking and large
animals were on the first floor. Because heat rises,
smaller animals and bedrooms were located on the
second floor. The third floor was for hay and straw
storage and acted as insulation. There is also a domed
brick fruit cellar that maintains a year-round temperature
of 54 degrees Fahrenheit. The Lutze Housebarn is owned
and being preserved by Centreville Settlement, Inc.,
a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the preservation
of the architectural and cultural heritage of the farming
community in the Centerville area.
10. Amish Barn Raising, 2004
Grant County, Wisconsin
11. Lone Pine Barn, 1910
Cedar Lake, Wisconsin
12. Gambrel Barn
Iowa County, Wisconsin
13. Round
Barn attached to Gambrel Barn, 1890
Jackson County, Wisconsin
|
