Opening the Barn Door

Amazing!!!!!

I have a secret love for old barns too. The area where I live has old barns here and there dotting the landscape on long rides. A shorter ride, right down the street from where I live, brings me to an old dilapidated barn weathered by the elements into a dark grey-brown color. Its windows are mostly gone, as are some of the pieces of siding. But it has an inherent charm about it. I've been drawn to it for years, and every time I pass it, I wonder what it was used for in its heyday. Today it may be a run down building, and I hope it will still be there tomorrow, but it must have been the site of some amazing things when it was new.

That is what I dream of myself. A small farm.... And a couple of kids and a big vegie patch and herb garden and an old haunted barn for my kids to make trouble in.

I love old barns! My dream is to one day be able to buy one and restore it... whether it is to live in or have an art studio.

I have bever seen such an amazing barn! Thanks for sharing!

Good photos. I agree with Tyler that if you don't take care of something, it will be gone. I have seen a number of abandoned houses and barns falling apart and it is sad. It's important to preserve the past.

Thanks for sharing! I love this story and that barn. It always makes me happy to see people restoring, rather than tearing down. :)

That's wonderful!!!

There's always one decision that can change our life.... Wonderful story!

I grew up playing in old barns. They hold secrets, and mystery, and the wonderful smell of hay. This old barn is utterly wonderful! Great story!

Amazing staircase!

What a great story. It is interesting how one decision can bring rewards from so many different directions.

I grew up playing in my grandfather's barn and my friend's father's barn...brings back lots of memories. I can't wait to go to my grandfather's farm again in 2 weeks to get more of the barnwood my customers love for our shop!

Wonderful article, thanks so much. I wonder what the old farms tools hanging on the barn wall were for. I've never seen anything like them, some of them look a little like traps.

This reminds me of my guilty pleasure books I read as a teenager, The Cat Who series - the main character lives in a renovated octagonal apple barn.

That's incredible, what a work of art!

a beautiful magical place

DalkullanJewelry - The spiky things hanging on the wall are called moletraps, they impale creatures running along underground burrows. I actually live in a converted barn, & the conversion process was definitely a learning curve! There have been many occasions when I've thought to myself "I didn't envision THIS in my life" & it's been a constant stream of learning new (to me anyway) & slightly obscure skills. LOL Here in the UK our old barns are built mainly of stone, so I'm fascinated by the internal structure of the wooden beams in Rich's barn. We truly don't appreciate the value of historical buildings enough, & it will be too late to wish they were still here when the last of them has been torn down.

Cool!

i want it :)

Yay IOWA! So many hidden treasures in this state :) Beautiful Barn- I've always wanted to turn one into a house.

In teaching watercolor, we have just completed the drawing of a barn/rustic structure to paint this week. I had hundreds of photos which I had taken from the early 1970s to the present to work from. Sadly, when asked where many of them were, I would have to say 'torn down'. Taxes, lack of funding, lack of energy all take these marvelous relics from us. Kudos to anyone with the courage and stamina to keep these wonderful samples of our past alive! This article was enough to make me want to travel to Iowa just to see this barn!

I love old barns, although they are tons of work. I fixed up one to use as my woodshop and it is nice to know I was able to preserve an older building and make it more useful. It adds a great unique feel, but often it seems a little dark and dreary due to all the old dark wood.

I love old barns. We had one growing up in upstate New York. The second floor was a playhouse for my sister and I. We would play for hours and hours. There was even an old roll of butcher paper left behind that we would use to color. So many great memories!!

Omg those pics are amazing. I love the rafters in the first pic.

Thank you for the warm story.. This proofs that anything could be a motivational work space as long as you have the effort to change it into one. Good luck Mr.Tyler!

What a cool story! Thanks Linzee :)

mazedasastoat thanks so much for letting me know what they are. That must be a wonderful adventure to live in a converted barn! I agree about old structures, it's so sad when they're torn down, that's great that you took the time and trouble to renovate your barn into a home.

Old barns are so beautiful. I'm glad he's going to restore it.

thats amazing... I am based in the UK, so we don't get structures like that here, i only seem them on the TV. Looks great, just looking up at the ceiling in real life must be a right treat.

What a great story !

wow, where I live there many old abandoned barns, I love driving and finding new ones. There is one that is my particular favorite but this one is amazing inside and out!

While none are so grand as this beautiful barn, we do have many old farm buildings here in coastal SC. Several that I have taken pictures of have been subsequently torn down. Though I am sad they are gone I am pleased to have had the opportunity to photograph them.

we are purchasing an empty wooded lot to build a farm house I just wish we could have something as different as this for our barn. There is never so much beauty as something built by hand such as this barn and not one of the newer manufactured types. Why people choose to live surrounded by items that are mass produced is beyond me. I believe its time we all slowed down and really begin to appreciate the beauty of handcrafted item's from something as large as this barn to some of the items we each make everyday.

Great story, good luck man

So beautiful.... so glad it has a caring new owner.

What a magical little plot of land! It's great to see it coming back to life :)

It's so nice to read stories of people admiring, respecting, and restoring history. I love old buildings, and wish everyone could see the beauty of so many buildings that just need a little TLC :-)

This is a great story. How wonderful that the community is so involved too!

A beyond beautiful space. As I face the upcoming sale of my grandfather's property this hits home.

this rocks!

nice photos, thank you.

The barn stairs are amazing, truly a "wonder" Thank you for sharing another great story... believing in our ability to create one of a kind beauty!

What wonderful old barn photographs!

Wow! Thanks for sharing this story. Saving history is an amazing gift to future generations.

I've loved old barns all my life so when I met my husband when I was 49 and saw his work it was a done deal! He restores old log cabins and barns. We really enjoyed your pictures!

Wonderful Post!!! Amazing Barn!!!!!

Interesting story and lovely photos!

So amazing! I love this story!

Hm, I live in Iowa and have heard about this barn. Interesting story, I had never really known very much about it. It's a beautiful barn, despite me not really liking most barns.

fascinating building - I'm glad the barn has someone to love it

Thanks for the story. I'm so glad someone found the barn who takes such a strong interest in its preservation.

Wow! What an amazing barn and story.

A wonderful story!

Love the story. My uncle had a round barn

Great blog. I am from the Midwest originally where there are so many of these barns. They are icons dotting the landscape. When I bought my farm it had a 4 story dutch style barn. As we restored it, it became a member of our family. Barns have a magical vibe.

What an impressive barn. I am so happy I spotted this article. I really enjoyed the story and the pictures. Obviously, I love barns. :)

That is the best looking barn I've ever seen.. all that beautiful old wood. It's a work of art and should be preserved as such.

I was also thinking of the Cat Who books. I always wondered what an octagonal barn would look like. Thank you for sharing!

Wow that's amazing !

I would have loved to have had my wedding there !

Wow! This is incredible...

Great story. If I am ever in Iowa I will have to stop by the barn. Thanks for the article.

Old barns are so neat. I remember my parents taking kids us on road trips and touring barns around Michigan years ago. Even as a young child, they were so intriguing to me.

There was an octagon barn just a stone's throw from my home in Western PA when I was growing up. I was devastated as a child in the 90s when the person who owned the land sold it to a developer who turned it into a huge shopping plaza. I'm very pleased to see that other octagon barns are being preserved for future generations to enjoy and admire their heritage. Thank you so much for your work!

I've always been a barn geek. this is a partically magical one. Wonderful story!

wonderful !

I am so glad that this old, beautiful barn found its soul mate to restore it, care for it and most importantly to share it. The world needs more people like, Tyler, who sees something of historic importance and works the rest of their lives on these amazing treasures even though they have no idea how it will all work out.

Oh wow, that is amazing. I want a cool secret barn of my own. It is so great to find such great architecture. That structure is so cool. I would totally just spend time in it staring at the structure and the beauty of it. I do hope that everyone that enters it does. Sounds like it is as well loved as it should be. Great find.

How lovely! I'd love to volunteer to restore a barn! Where does one have to look to get such an opportunity?

Love this post!

Beautiful old barn............... many a road trip have I taken, stopping along the way to take pictures of old barns, this one is truely Amazing! Thanks for sharing

AMAZING!!!

Takes me back to my days at riding camp and loving to sit in a private, cozy perch in the barn and think big (and little) thoughts!

Such a wonderful story - beautiful barn, too.

What a great story! It's amazing how passionate he is about this barn.

How wonderful you found this old barn, I love exploring old farmhouses and barns, wondering about thier history and the people who lived there in the past. Great article, thank-you for sharing!

Such a beautiful old barn! I think restoring historical buildings is an important & worthy task.

beautiful architecture. never been in a barn like this. european style is quite different i guess. :)

What a beautiful and unique barn! My home is an old renovated barn. It is so cool and special! So lovely to preserve and use a historic building.

Awesome - I love big old barns. The area I live in, in Michigan is home to the biggest barn in the state and it's magnificent. Yay Barns.

I love your perseverance and adventure!

Amazing structure! Lovely to see traditional buildings like this still standing : )

W-O-N-D-E-R-F-U-L!!

Yes it is the Cat Who Barn from Lillian Jackson Braun's books. I love it!

What an amazing structure! Treasures like this are all around us, but are often overlooked, just another part of the "scenery". Thank you for taking such good care of a national treasure.

This old barn seems to be a really magical place. I think if you work in a place like that, you start looking at your own little problems in a different way. Thank you for the lovely story and the wonderful photos.

the picture of the interior of the roof.. holy wow! I am so glad to get to see and read this article this morning. an amazing hobby. so glad you took it up.

****** This is where I got married in October!! ********* The location is absolutely stunning. Here's the photo set for any of you that are interested in seeing what it looks like during festivities! http://www.flickr.com/photos/katiemauer/sets/72157628033070318/ Everyone commented on how unique and beautiful the space was. We were overjoyed to be able to use the barn. Rich was a dream vendor to work with!

restoring the barn, building community is inspiring and spreading across the country...I just participated in a sustainability workshop where one of the students building a green home in westchester county ny described a similar experience where random people just stop by and help dig or raise or provide sustainable ideas for her dream home over lunch one of the reasons I love Etsy, the sense of community

What a great story! Thanks.

Great article. That barn is amazing. The inside roof work shown in one of the pictures is a work of art. I live in upsate New York and we still have some nice barns. I'm currently looking for a barn to set up a showroom for our products.

This old barn reminds me of a beautiful church. I hope you'll keep us posted as you progress and share photos when you finish. Thanks for this wonderful piece of history come back to life, Karen Kettering

I love it! Old barns are so beautiful. I love that amazing staircase.......

Oh my goddness! that barn is so cute and quaint! I love it!

I'm with you on the love for old barns. My siblings and I grew up playing in a wonderful old barn that had a corner sectioned off to hold shelled soybeans. Swimming in a ball pit of tiny, smooth, cool soybeans was second only to jumping in a trailer of just picked cotton. Childhood on a farm is almost as good as it gets.

I spent my whole childhood and part of my adult life in Iowa. Both of my grandfathers were farmers, and I loved visiting their farms and helping with the farm chores when I was a child. Old barns still fascinate me, and this one is amazing! Thanks for sharing this story!! :)

I'd like to walk up that Tim Burton staircase inside the roof! The imagination and skills of independent builders from earlier days are unbelievable. Built in 1883? No power tools, no nail guns. Which reminds me, the nails are might be handmade and beautiful as well. Thank you, Linzee. A treasure.

People who go out on a limb to save a peice of history have a special place in my heart. Congratulations on saving such a cool barn. I give you major credit for taking on personal risk in hopes of having something cool for your kids and community.

live the dream

Oh Wow! What a treasure. Lovely story & photos. Thanks for sharing this piece of history with us all.

Fascinating!

I loved this story! Thank-you for the doing the hard, and usually unappreciated work of helping to preserve pieces of our national history through restorations like your Secrest Barn. i liv ein Minnesoata and have seen my share of barns over the years, but yours is spectacular! I admire your dedication. Maybe it's time to take a "barn tour road trip"! Laurie

We used to live in the country and behind our house was the same barn that our neighbour owned. We always took its beauty for granted but it was certainly special and we have many photographs of it.

We have an old bank barn and I fully grasp what a massive undertaking it must have been to restore this one. Great job!

Love the story about the old barn and how you're restoring it. I too grew up playing in an old barn. It holds many memories of fun summer days! In our county in Illinois there are several barns made by a shipbuilder who settled here. They all feature round windows similiar to the portholes on ships. Every fall there is a barn tour featuring different barns. We also have 1 barn that we know of that was on the underground railroad as determined by drawings made in the barn. It would be interesting to see your barn!

What a wonderful man and an amazing barn. Wow, what a job it must have been to construct it and to have someone now who values it so much and wants to share it with the world , it gives you such faith in people. Great article, thank you for sharing.

The inside pic(second one) is truly amazing! Really great that it is getting so much use. It breaks my heart when I see ads for tobacco barns being torn down here in my area of NC.

thank you for this story on grass roots preservation...what a beautiful structure. I'd say a trip to Downey, IA is in order.

Downey Iowa is just south east of Iowa City, a beautiful little gem of a river town. Secrest Barn comes right up on the google map.

On the Southeast edge Washington, Illinois, there was a barn so much like this I thought this was it! It very well may have been built by the same person. It is gone now, sad to say. I photographed it in the 80s and Edna Brown, a wonder local artist painted it many times as did other local painters. Many of us knew, when it was sold, it may be torn down and people did try to have it saved. Too little too late. This one is so beautiful!! y Aunt, Edith Roemersberger and her husband, Warren, of Eureka, Il., took so many barn pictures that they did slide shows for the historical society. SAve your barn! It is truly special! Mar Wargo

необыкновенно!!!

It's GREAT to read an article from a fellow Iowan and also about a wonderful Iowa barn! Such a nice piece! Much hard work goes into maintaining the old buildings. I am grateful though when I get to view them when driving through the countryside! Thank you!

I just love the pictures and the article, I wished we lived closer. 4 boys, would have a great time.

Beautiful! Great story!

This is so inspiring! I agree - we need to protect these structures. It seems more and more rare that people are building geometric buildings these days. What a shame - they're always the best... not the Pentagon though.

Wow! What an amazing barn!! Thank you for sharing. :)

I have finally found time to read more things on etsy and I found this article to peek my interest the most. We have been restoring our 180 yr old barn on our own in the last 5 years. When we have a little extra monies we put it toward it. My hubby and I have been begged by so many friends to have their kids weddings in it that we decided to make it a project for our retirement. I was fascinated to see you could possibly get grants for things like this. I have no clue where to begin so will do more research. Barns like these have been torn down an replaced with steel and more efficient materials but you just cant replace the character and craftsman ship that men put into this large beauties from the past. Wish I could talk to Tyler more about this. Our community does not seem to be so opened minded and caring as yours is Tyler. And believe me we have tried to reach out to farmers to ask questions about our buildings. We have been documenting the slow progress so far on our blog and will continue to, Hopefully writing on here we may get more well guided information, from others out in this great universe with ideas, Loved this article!

Wonderful story!!! The barn is beautiful!