How do you tell if a barn is worth saving?

Some would say that financially they are never worth saving… and they have a valid point. Old barns are money pits.

If you ever encounter a land owner who is working on their barn, give them a hug and a word of encouragement and appreciation for saving a treasured part of our landscape. Trust me, they will appreciate it.

For me, the guy doing the work, and not writing the check, the determining factor on saving a barn is… “Can I remove all the parts of the barn that are bad and find that the barn still stands?”

The answer to that question was “yes” for this barn and so that is where we started… removing the damaged and decayed wood.

Originally posted 2015-05-14 13:07:50.

There is a simple elegance to even the most basic of barns.

I’ve stared at them for years trying to figure out why my eye is drawn to them, while at the same time I am so repulsed by most of the new homes being built today.

Is it the simple basic lines? or perhaps, the lack of faux embellishments? or does it have nothing to do with the design, but rather with what these old structures represent?… a simpler time, a time when humans were more in tune with nature, with animals, and with other people.

Originally posted 2015-05-14 12:42:34.

Over the years I’ve been offered hundreds of old barns, free for the salvaging… each an opportunity for antique materials before these structures were bulldozed or burned down.

On some days there would be multiple unsolicited messages on my phone for me to come look at yet more of these unwanted relics of our past. For years the calls were overwhelming.

But the phone doesn’t ring with offers like that near as much any more… I fear what that means. For certain when I drive the roads of this state I don’t see those wonderful “cow houses” like I used to.

Most of those barns that I was offered… I never went to look at, there were just too many, my resources were too thin, and my focus was more on saving the old houses.

The houses that were in danger of being lost were from a much earlier period and contained much finer and more valuable materials. While most of the neglected barns were “20th century” and were built of materials identical to what one can obtain at any local sawmill.

Likely the vast majority of those barns that I was offered are gone. They are now just memories.

But this old barn still stands today… thanks to a little help from me and my crew… and the barn’s owner who surprised me when he took my advice to let me repair it.

Originally posted 2015-05-14 12:22:13.

Here is the next set of scans from the Country Living magazine article on this log home…

The quality of photography in these photos is light-years beyond mine.

I am so, so, humbled.

The effort put into getting the proper lighting and composing each shot really pays off… not to mention lots of high dollar equipment.

Just look at this photo of the kitchen fireplace!

Sweet!

Back in the 1990’s, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, these photographers would have everything set in place perfectly and then they would take a Polaroid photo through the eyepiece of the tripod mounted camera to see if any further adjustments were needed. I was so impressed with that at the time. Today it’s all done with computers, monitors, and Photoshop.

Regardless of the tools used though, photographers are still artists, and there is nothing better than watching an artist at work. I still stand behind them and watch as they do their magic.

If there was a channel of tv that just showed artists at work… I’d tune in. No drama needed… but maybe, a bit of background music would be nice.

Originally posted 2015-05-13 11:30:25.

Here are the second and third pages of the Country Living article on this cabin… which create sort-of a centerfold… yeah, I know… ooh la la. 😉

I’d like to point out the “summer beam” in the ceiling. This large oak timber runs the length of the first floor, right down the center of the rooms and provides added strength to the joists above.

This summer beam was not original to the cabin and was added by us after the joists were in place and it became obvious that there was too much “bounce” on the second floor.

I’m not certain if the bounce was something the original owners put up with, or if they had some kind of interior framed walls downstairs that helped support it. But, we felt that the situation was unacceptable and that something needed to be done.

It was quite a challenge to install this extremely heavy beam up into place. But, our efforts were rewarded with a greatly strengthened floor system.

I also think that this hewn timber adds tremendously to the look of the room.

So, what do you think? Would you like to kick back on the couch and enjoy the fire for a bit?

Originally posted 2015-05-12 18:23:33.

Page 1 of the the Country Living article on this cabin…

The photo shoot was in a word… “classy”.

This old country boy was impressed.

“Country Living” flew in from around the country some of the best photographers in their field.

They timed their arrival to coincide with the beautiful Fall colors. You can see all the bountiful harvest on the porch… so meticulously arranged… from the orange pumpkins and even a gallon of fresh apple cider… yum.

Their images are nothing like my photos where ladders, mops, and sawhorses are clearly visible. lol My photos are embarrassing in comparison.

Originally posted 2015-05-12 17:57:56.

Remember that song back in 1970’s about how a rock band would know that they had made the big time when they were on the cover of the Rolling Stone magazine?

Well, if you were a log builder in the 1990’s the dream was to make the cover of Country Living magazine… and this cabin, made it there for me. 🙂

No, my smiling face wasn’t featured on the cover… lol… but, trust me… I was standing behind the photographers… with a wide smile across my face.

Originally posted 2015-05-12 15:08:58.