Saying Goodbye to a Great Friend of Old Barns: Dr. William J. Kimball (1925-2013)
William J. Kimball PhD, or Bill as we knew him, recently departed this life at the age of 87 in Lansing, Michigan on May 24, 2013. He was born on October 6, 1925 to Elmer and Gladys Kimball in Seymour, Wisconsin. Bill worked for 39 years as a professor at Michigan State University and as an Extension Specialist in community and organizational development. He authored numerous studies on the value of citizen input and action in our communities. He was a tireless advocate for historic barn preservation and facilitated the creation and growth of many state and local barn...
Read MoreEdgemoor Barn Turns 100! Celebration Planned for Saturday, May 11th
This post submitted by Ellen Henry and friends at the Santee Historical Society in Santee, California. This year, the group is celebrating the barn’s birthday with a big bash to help raise funds for its continued preservation! To learn more about this event, click here or visit http://www.santeehistoricalsociety.com/ On May 3, 1913, John H. Dupee, a high-society millionaire businessman from Chicago, purchased a nearly 500 acre farm for a reported $85,000. Dupee purchased the Williamson’s farm for his son, Walter Hamlin Dupee. Dupee, committed to owning the largest dairy farm...
Read MoreA Traditional Marriage: Historic Barns & Beautiful Quilts
This article was submitted by Suzi Parron, author of Barn Quilts and the American Quilt Trail Movement. We are thrilled to connect with Ms. Parron and others active in the barn quilt movement. The NBA sees the use of quilt blocks and historic barns behind them, acting as a canvas, to be an enchanting (and culturally significant!) reflection of men and women’s traditional work on farms across the country. The historic barns of Kittitas County, Washington, are receiving quite a bit of attention these days. Several local barns have been decorated with barn quilts—quilt...
Read MoreA Student’s Review of the NBA/UMW Winter Meeting Collaboration
Guest post by Catherine A. Brau, a Historic Preservation student at the University of Mary Washington (UMW). Our sincere thanks to Ms. Brau and the rest of the UMW and UDel students who participated in the Winter Meeting Presentations and shared their findings with us! Barn lovers! The National Barn Alliance Meeting was hosted on campus February 15th – 17th. The National Barn Alliance is a non-profit organization committed to preserving America’s Historic barns while seeking to educate the public on efforts to preserve barns. They encourage the documentation of barns and...
Read MoreWrite for The Barn Journal
The National Barn Alliance is seeking articles and contributors for our Newsletter, “The Barn Door”. The “The Barn Door” is bi-yearly publication mailed to our membership. Articles will also be posted on here on, “The Barn Journal.” We encourage individuals as well as our state and local barn preservation partners to share updates on their activities. This is an opportunity to share your successes with others working to save historic barns in their own states. Article topics must be barn-focused such as history/preservation, grant programs, kids & education, photos,...
Read MoreThe Doncaster Barn or Bayers Barn
A guest post by NBA member, Jill Hotchkiss. The old round barn just outside Twin Bridges, Montana was built in 1882 by Noah Armstrong, one of the lesser known Copper Kings, who was at that time superintendent of the Glendale smelter and discoverer of the Hecla mine in western Montana. Being from Kentucky, Armstrong had a love for horses and horse racing. He purchased the ranch in 1882 calling it the Doncaster Ranch after one of his favorite race horses. He then built a magnificent three-story round barn in which to raise and train race...
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About The Barn Journal
The Barn Journal is a way to keep updated with the lastest news from the barn preservation community.
The National Barn Alliance is a nation-wide, non-profit organization coordinating preservation efforts to save America’s Historic Barns. Our members are farmers and city dwellers, students, historical groups, timber framers, and lots of folks who just love barns.