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[VAN DELL JORDAN <vdjor AT yahoo.com>]

I am envious of the barn some friends have acquired. 
They found a farm being sold and bought the 4 acres
that contained the farmstead.  There is an old barn
set into a slope, animals kept on ground floor dug
half into the hill and the main floor has drive in
double doors on the other side of the barn.  I don't
understand why there were so few barns built like that
in this area.
The ground floor walls are stone, with clay(?) for
mortar, at least it looks, feels, and tastes like clay
so short of analysis....
The beams holding up the main floor are hand hewn,
though I think the wall and floor boards are from a
saw mill.
The loft is to one side, almost like a mezzanine.  The
area between the big doors is open to the roof,
perhaps to allow pitching hay from a wagon into the
loft, though perhaps the rest of the main floor except
the drive area was for storing hay and that loft may
be just a way to use the space above a grain bin. 
Opposite the drive in doors on the main floor is
another pair of large doors but the sill on these is
at least six feet off the ground.  Since I see no sign
of ever a way to drive up through that door, my guess
is that it might have been for winnowing grain.  
I know at one point that was how grain was separated
doors on both sides of the threshing floor to let
breezes carry the chaff away.
My guess is that this barn goes back to at least civil
war.  So far they've shown no interest in letting me
dismantle in order to rebuild at my place.  I guess
the fact that they value this shows why we are
friends.
I am interested of course in any information about
this or questions that I might want to look into.  I
am an amateur architect and history buff so I read and
study this sort of this a lot, though not
systematically.  Most of the barns that I have
personal experience with dated from about 1900.  Most
buildings around here older that were replaced before
my time.  Now most of what I remember has been
replaced with structures that are modern, practical
(at least in today's world) and very mundane....
Oh yes the owner is now a subscriber to this group, so
welcome and feel free to add any comments.
Van Dell


--- Clansgian AT wmconnect.com wrote:
 but it's a pity that 
> there's no practical reason to preserve the old
> barns any longer.  And they 
> are slowly falling to the ground.
> 
> Many of the barns had cow stalls and dairies on the
> ground level, but keeping 
> dairly animals is about gone too.
>