Remember when the builders mistakenly put board and batten on the (decorative) doors at the end of Jim and Katie’s Bungalow Barn?
Well, they finally fixed them yesterday, so I thought I’d post a photo of the newly-added Xs!
(Don’t worry, the crepe myrtle will grow back!)
Seeing them made me curious about why people started using Xs on barn doors to begin with, so I did a little Googling, and found out that the ”X” design of white boards across barn doors is there for the very practical purpose of making the barn door stronger. Who knew? 😀 I also learned that large, sliding (exterior) barn doors became popular because then the farmer need not swing open a wide door and let in a rush of cold air. So smart! (And as a sliding barn door lover, I’m so glad they introduced that trend!)
I was also tickled to read that “while the depiction of barn raising in movies always seems to feature cheerful people singing and staying around for a dance that night, this fictionalized version of barn-raising is not too far from the truth. Barns were a big project that required help from many willing volunteers and the process needed to go quickly so that everyone could get back to their own farms. While the singing and dancing may or may not have happened, the neighbors were almost certainly delighted to see each other and share news. Women came along to cook and the children played and helped where they could”. How neat!
I also read that “ventilation was always important, both for animals and for grain. (Grain could explode if it was packed too tightly and the sun beat down on the building for a time.) Vents under the eaves were common, but some barns had slits running vertically along the walls for air; others had cupolas for the same reason”. Jim and Katie’s cupola is just for looks, but how interesting to know that they used to keep grain from exploding!
The article went on to say that “these openings served another purpose: owls could come in during the day and roost in the rafters”, and that “farmers welcomed the owls as they helped keep the mouse population down”.
Good thing we have a Kit-Cat for that. 😉
PS- Rumor has it the painters are backed up right now, so I’m not sure when the inside of the barn and the back side of our house will be painted Simply White (Benjamin Moore), but we’re pretty used to being patient ( 😉 ) so we’ll just be happy to see them whenever they do show up.
I applaud your patience, as I would be on my last nerve wanting it to get finished 🙂 But you have the luxury of not seeing the frigid cold of winter knocking on the door in just a month or 2, so you can get that house painted outside any time 🙂 I can’t wait to see it finished! Your blog is my inspiration for my new house we just moved into and I can’t wait to start adding all those special details that make it less “builder” and more HOME. 🙂
I am loving the x design on the doors, but it brings me to this question. If those are doors, how are they opening? I don’t see any sliding hardware, or hinges. I can’t wait to see the finished project, I’m enjoying the process !!
Oh, they’re *decorative* doors, Jan. ?
We were in Pennsylvania Amish Country a few years ago on vacation. We were staying in a bed and breakfast and during the middle of the night we were startled awake by a glow outside our windows and tons of commotion. A HUGE Amish Dairy barn was on fire!!! It burnt to the ground in less than an hour, many of the cows lost along with it. Devastating. The very next morning we saw more Amish horse drawn carts than we could count, coming down the road, many of the carts pulling a dairy cow behind it. I kid you not… in less than a day the barn site was cleared away of all burnt debris, and within 6 days the entire barn was rebuilt!!!! And the cows we saw being pulled behind the carts the morning after the fire? Each family donated a cow from their own herd to help replace the poor cows that were lost. I canNOT believe that we were able to witness the full circle restoration of what was lost. It was a terrible fire, but a blessing to us to witness that true meaning of community!
Thank you for sharing this story, Dawn. This real-life example of people taking care of each other was something I really needed to hear today <3
I second this.
Very inspiring. Thank you.
So glad you shared this story. It really gave me a lump in my throat. Beautiful!
I like! And love the red color you chose. I kinda knew most of the facts about barns that you found (husband had an uncle who was a milk cow farmer.) But the movies have probably glorified the barn raising, for sure. Yes, the workers had to be fed, but I doubt they purposely had a dance.
Glad you can wait for your painters! We are pushing to get our house finished because we gave our 30 day notice to our apartment! EEK! If it doesn’t get done and inspections are delayed, we may be living in our cars! Sooo stressed these days! Wish we had waited two more weeks, but the rent is killing our wallets!
P.S. Love the kitty pic!
I’ve been to a real barn raising (way out in the Ozark Nat’l Forest of Arkansas in the early 80’s), and it was just as you described. The singing and dancing most definitely did take place at night. I’m pretty sure there was a pig roast, and my 6-year-old self danced barefoot with a tambourine at some point. 🙂 It was so much fun, the owner (who had built the barn for his wood carving / furniture factory) had an annual barn raising for several years after that (which was basically just a huge campout / party since the barn was already raised). 🙂
Looks great! Are you still going to put a barn quilt up?
Is anyone else having a problem with the link for the Vintage Quilt Auction?
Why would you do that to the Crepe Myrtle?
Boy the X doors add a great touch! I am loving the red color! I’m sure Steevenson has learned a lot about barns too! Looks like kit kat enjoys the space too!
Patience and contractors should automatically go together! While we each are anxious for our own projects to get tended to, the contractor is possibly busy tending to last minute requests from current client? And yes you are REALLY good at being patient!
Enjoy the process and thanks for sharing the steps along the way!
The email about the barn that completely burned down with the cows inside was heartbreaking to read. But then the next line explained how the Amish community rebuilt the barn, and each family the gave their cows to show their support to the family who lost their barn and livestock. Amazing Amish!
This was really interesting, I never knew any of those things!! Can’t wait to see more progress… you are more patient that I am!! :o)
Tania
I am glad the doors were fixed as look much nicer.
The barn looks MUCH better with the X’s! More aesthetically pleasing.
I clicked your link to your ebay, but you have nothing listed. …sob…..I was hoping to maybe purchase one of the quilts before I head back to Australia tomorrow….Oh well, Happy Barn Raising!
Thought you might like this tidbit I picked up writing a paper years ago in an architecture history class. Barns got their traditional red color because of cost – the cheapest way to protect the barns consisted of a blend of oils and pigments that created a rust-red hue once applied. Over time farmers realized the color actually helped absorb heat in the winter, keeping animals inside warmer so they slowly added pigment to increase heat absorption (especially in the northeast and upper Midwest, where red barns are most common). Over time, companies started creating and marketing a special “barn red” blend and it just became the norm ?
Lovely Xs and interesting history! I’m going to remember this style when we get around to redoing our garage’s exterior loft door. As of now, it’s just an old piece of solid plywood. :/ A new wooden door with an X would look great.
I never knew the X’s were used to support the doors, interesting! I do love them as decoration on this barn though, it looks great!