old timberframers

I have recently came into ownership of an old hand hewn and sawn timber frame barn here in souther Missouri. It was built between 1885 and 1895. It is probably not Amish, how can I find out who did timberframing in this area during that time period? I have researched county records to no avail. Can you help?

Unfortunately, this is one of the most difficult tasks in studying and documenting early timber frames. It would appear that most of the barns built during the American expansion into the midwest were built by crews who travelled through areas where barn framing crews were needed. Once their work was done, they moved on. Since they often were not residents, they do not show up on tax, census or other government records.

Last year we had occasion to work on a barn restoration project which involved the preservation for display (a sort of oxymoron?) of the family records of the barn's owner. During the research of the ledgers the names of the carpenters and their place of origin was recorded for the barn framing, carpentry and finish work, as well as general labor on the farm.

Considering the fact that records were always kept by hand, and ledgers were a way of documenting how much and to whom money at been paid, it's possible you may be able to find some early ledgers that could help reveal the barn framers that travelled through your part of the world.

Good luck and enjoy your research.