PAST EVENTS
Northeast Michigan Barn Tour
Date: Saturday, Oct. 15, 2022
Participants on the 2022 Fall Color Barn Tour visited select barns in the Lake Huron counties of Alcona, Alpena and Presque Isle on northern Michigan’s east side.
The itinerary featured a variety of barn styles and examples of historical preservation for either agricultural or adaptive use. Highlights included AJ’s Berry Farm near Alpena, the historic Elowsky Grist Mill in Posen and in Alcona County, Somer’s Barn – a beautiful fieldstone centennial farm and Purple Wild Farm with its round-roof barn and goat herd. See pictures here.
Cost: $60
Meridian Heritage Festival
Date: Saturday, Oct. 1, 10AM to 4PM
Location: Meridian Historical Village located at 5151 Marsh Road, Okemos, MI 48864
MBPN’s Teamwork & Timbers model barn was at this free, fun family event in Okemos. The festival featured Civil War reenactors, a vintage baseball game, children’s fishing and games, craft demonstrations and food trucks. Visitors also toured the structures in the Meridian Historic Village and viewed exhibits at the Nokomis Native American Cultural Center.
Hadley Homestead Harvest Days – Farm Hop and Festival
Date: Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022
Location: Hadley Mill Museum, 3633 S. Hadley Rd, Hadley MI (Lapeer County)
- Farm Hop – This tour is designed for families, history buffs and those who simply want to revisit old America. Equipped with a map, guests on this self-guided tour will enjoy an engaging perspective of several area properties integral to farming in this region.
- Festival – Art Fair, Music & Food Trucks and More! at Le Fleur Décor, 3442 S. Hadley Road.
- Mill Museum at 3633 S. Hadley Rd – Open from 10:00-5:00. Free admission.
For more information, call the Museum at 810-797-4026.
Romeo Barn Tour
Date: Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022
This Macomb County community hosts an annual barn tour on the third Saturday of September. The 2022 event featured 8 sites with over 19 structures on the self-guided tour.
Contact: the Romeo Historical Society at 586-752-4111.
Fall Family Days at the Thumb Octagon Barn
Sept. 9-11, 2022
The Thumb’s premier barn festival is held the weekend after Labor Day. It kicks off with the Fish Fry on Friday night, followed by two days of family events on Saturday and Sunday. In previous years the MBPN exhibit and timber-frame model barn has been displayed in the barn museum during the festival.
Information is posted at the Museum’s website and Octagon Barn Facebook Page. Contact MBPN member Rose Putnam, who co-chairs the event for Friends of the Thumb Octagon Barn, at 989-444-9574.
Sleeping Bear Dunes Barn Restoration Workshop
June 21-24, 2022
Location: Ole Olson Farm, 5 miles north of Glen Arbor, MI on M-22.
This marks the 27th year that the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore park maintenance staff has hosted a “hands-on” barn restoration workshop.
Participants worked on repairing the whole Ole Olson farmstead — the large barn floor, as well as a variety of outbuildings from sheds and rabbit hutches to chicken coops and a granary.
The purpose of the workshop is to teach the techniques and train owners and those interested how to do restoration work on timber and frame structures. Topics include: Wood Siding Repair, Barn Floor Joist and Floor Boards, Animal Stall Repair, Door and Window Repair, and much more. The wide range of projects makes it a good activity for families and novice carpenters, as well as more seasoned carpenters.
There is no cost to participants. Workers are not required to be skilled in the building trades, though experience will be helpful and appreciated. Participants should wear boots, gloves, and bring a sack lunch for each day that they attend.
Camping is allowed on-site at the Ole Olsen Barn during the barn workshop for all registered participants interested in doing so. Amenities are provided on-site, including access to showers at park campgrounds.
Those interested in attending next year’s event should contact the park historical architect, Kimberly Mann, by phone at (231) 326-4771, by email at kimberly_mann@nps.gov or by postal mail c/o Sleeping Bear Dunes N.L., 9922 Front St., Empire, MI 49630.
Michigan County Poor Farms – A Virtual Presentation
Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021
Long before the advent of modern social welfare, county governments in Michigan maintained poorhouses or poor farms. These facilities became both self-sustaining entities and refuges for a county’s poor, elderly and destitute.
Access the recording on the Library of Michigan YouTube Channel.
This MBPN 2021 Barn of the Year was restored by the Leelanau County Historic Preservation Society.
FundRaise the Barn Roof
Sunday, Oct. 17, 2021
The Community Farm of Ann Arbor hosted a fundraiser to replace the roofs on their historic barns. MBPN member, architect and barn historian Chuck Bultman, along with Terry Richards, presented “Healthy Structures,” an interactive talking tour. The festivities included children’s activities as well as contra dancing with music by local band “Nutshell” and local dance caller Drake Meadow.
Location: Community Farm of Ann Arbor, 1525 S. Fletcher Rd, Chelsea, MI
Exhibit at Ella Sharp Museum
From Dec. 12, 2020 to Sept. 12, 2021, the Ella Sharp Museum in Jackson hosted a special exhibit showcasing the beauty and history of barns as documented by artists, preservationists and multi-generational farmers.
Our Wooden Built Heritage: Structural Evaluation of Existing Timber Structures
May 6, 2021 at 1:00 pm
Tom Nehil, of Nehil-Sivak Structural Engineers, presented acceptable practices for evaluating existing structures, and explained why it is necessarily different than design of new timber structures. This webinar sponsored by the Michigan Historic Preservation Network benefitted engineers and investigators directly involved in structural assessments and also owners, architects, and builders wishing to understand the process better and hire the work done well. (Photos courtesy of MHPN and Tom Nehil)
Stamp Out Barn Loss!
Virtual Gathering on Barn History and Preservation Trends
In celebration of the U.S. Postal Service’s January 24, 2021 issuance of a new set of barn stamps for postcards, the New Hampshire Preservation Alliance held a virtual gathering for barn preservation groups across the country.
It featured a panel of nationally recognized barn experts discussing what old barns mean to our communities, trends in barn preservation and practical ideas for stewardship. An award-winning fiddle player opened and closed the program.
The 36-cent Barn postcard stamps celebrate the beauty and history of American barns. Each stamp reflects one of the four seasons: a round barn surrounded by the hazy light and warm colors of fall; a gambrel-roofed barn in summer; a forebay barn in early spring; and a Western barn on a winter’s night. See announcement by USPS.
Raising the Roof on Michigan’s Barn Heritage
Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2021, Noon to 1 pm
Live-stream lecture by Jim Mulvany, Barn Historian and Michigan Barn Preservation Network Board Member
History Hounds® Lecture Series hosted by the Historical Society of Michigan (HSM)
Michigan Virtual Barn School: The Basics
Dec. 10, 2020 at 1:00 pm
The webinar covered a brief history of barns in Michigan, barn terminology and parts, and free to low-cost fixes barn owners can do to help their barn structures. Replay available here.
Presenters: MBPN Technical Committee – Steve Stier, Tammis Donaldson and Stephanie White
Host: Michigan Historic Preservation Society – Mallory Bower
For more information about Barn School Workshops, click here.
Barn School Field Workshops
Participants spent a Saturday assessing the condition and stability of a barn to determine its needs. They learned about barn architecture, construction, maintenance and repair approaches.
- Sept. 14 in Northern Michigan (Wexford and Kalkaska counties): Workshop included a stone repointing demonstration. Instructors: Steve Stier and Tammis Donaldson.
- Sept. 28 in Grass Lake (Jackson County): Projects included closing a gap in the basement foundation wall and adding a support column at a rotted beam connection. Instructors: Tammis Donaldson, Stephanie White and Steve Stier.
To inquire about future Barn School programs, contact: Steve Stier at stephenstier@gmail.com.
Click here for Teamwork & Timbers schedule at local festivals and events.