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popular old barn layouts #13376 11/28/07 07:21 AM
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bert sarkkinen Offline OP
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Hi, I'm Bert w/Arrow Timber Framing and am doing some research on popular old barn layouts. It would be fun to learn not only about the layout but also about why they had the design they choose. If any of you know of good liturature or have plans you'd be willing to share, that would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a bunch, Bert.

Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: bert sarkkinen] #13377 11/28/07 07:22 AM
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bert sarkkinen Offline OP
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Thanks, my e-mail is bert@arrowtimber.com

Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: bert sarkkinen] #13383 11/29/07 02:45 AM
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Dave Shepard Offline
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Barn layout is influenced both by needs, and heritage of the builder. In my area, Western Mass., there are a lot of English three bay barns. There are doors in the middle of both walls on the eave sides, this is the threshing bay. The threshing bay is situated to take advantage of crosswinds. On one side of the threshing bay the grains, still on the stalk, are stored, along with loose hay. The other bay would often have stalls for horses and cows. Just over the line in NY, Dutch barns are prevalent. Dutch barns are noted for long aisles that run with the ridge of the barn, with roofs that run down close to the ground, forming long "sheds" along the eave walls of the barn. I have books by Endersby, Greenwood, and Larkin that show many different styles of barns, as well as books by Eric Sloane.


Dave


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Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: Dave Shepard] #13386 11/29/07 04:42 AM
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Housewright Offline
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Hi Bert;

I am glad you said the words "barn" and "popular" because there are so many possible floor plans for buildings. Dave's answer is right on: a side entry or an end entry with three bays.

However, if you start looking at the details and buildings other than barns there are a large number of floor plans depending on the specific use. I highly recomend John Vlach's book BARNS, it has floor plans, elevations and photographs of a large number of different types of barns.

Frame well;
Jim


The closer you look the more you see.
"Heavy timber framing is not a lost art" Fred Hodgson, 1909
Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: Housewright] #13431 12/04/07 02:23 AM
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northern hewer Offline
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HI everyone on this thread:

There is another old barn style that seems to gets missed quite often and that is the swing beam barn. These barns are 3 bay but the one bay has a full span beam on one side of the threshing floor that lets the threshing floor extend underneath for more width

NH

Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: northern hewer] #13432 12/04/07 10:23 AM
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Housewright Offline
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Hi Again;

I just came accross another interesting book with floor plans. Old Barn Plans by Richard Rawson. I do not doubt that the barns presented in this book were well recorded, but I believe some of the interpitation is incorrect so don't quote everything written in it.

NH, you were right, Mr Rawson did not include a swing beam barn in this book.

Jim


The closer you look the more you see.
"Heavy timber framing is not a lost art" Fred Hodgson, 1909
Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: Housewright] #13459 12/07/07 09:04 PM
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timber brained Offline
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NH. I also am least knowledgeable on the swing beam barns. I have seen pictures of the beams and I know how they looked, their dimensions, and basically their place in the frame but I wonder if you had more specifics on swing beams and their barn frames designs(perhaps some drawings or pics of bent framing)? tb

Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: timber brained] #13496 12/11/07 01:14 AM
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Tony T Offline
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Check out the books by Richard Babcock:

Richard W. The Barns at Wolftrap. Babcock, 1982.

Ed. note: Mr. Babcock is the legendary timber framer who constructed the Barns at Wolftrap Farm Park, Vienna, VA.

Babcock, Richard W. Barns Researched, Restored and Resurrected Using Ancient Raising Methods. 1998, 145 pp. Available from Richard Babcock, Hancock, MA. 01237.

Babcock, Richard W., Stevens, Lauren R. Old Barns in the New World, Reconstructing History. Berkshire House Publishers: Lee, MA. 1996, 191 pp.. Several have plans for a huge German Swingbeam barn that he moved to Wolftrap

Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: Tony T] #13506 12/12/07 01:12 AM
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northern hewer Offline
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Hi TB:

There are 2 swing beam barns in my area that I know of and that I have examined over the years.

Both of the "swing beams" are constructed differently, but do essentially the same job of fully spanning from eve to eve on one side of the threshing floor.

Both are works of art by those that created them, and I really wanted to reconstruct one of them at UCV before I retired, but unfortunately that never happened. The best that I could do was to video tape them and do measurements, and store the information for future use should the buildings themselves disappear.

The one swing beam in the "Barkley Barn" is about 45 feet long, and starts out at 9" square at each end. From that point it tapered on the up side until at the centre it was about 9" by 14" at this point.

At the centre point of the beam a short post about 20" in height stood between another full length upper chord which was 9" square and it also was 45 feet in length. After about 140 years it was still standing straight and true as the day it was built.

Many of the roof boards in this barn was original and measured up to 24' in width, and showed the bite of the teeth of an early vertical blade saw mill.

I do have video tape footage on both barns that I put together for other interested individuals, and is available should anyone visiting this site be interested.

NH

Re: popular old barn layouts [Re: Tony T] #13556 12/16/07 12:55 PM
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Tony T Offline
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I have a jpeg image(s) that I scanned from Richards book of the the German swing beam barn (Barns at Wolftrap), not sure there is a way to post it?

I asked Richard about this and he said it was O.K. to post it as long as he received proper attribution for his work.

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