I’ve passed this barn hundreds of times, and every time I’ve wondered if it would still be there the next time I was driving Hwy 74 between Cape and Dutchtown. I guess it must be made of some strong stuff, because it’s still standing.
Still, I pulled off the road “just in case” a spring storms would be The One. As I looked at the photos, it dawned on me that one of these days old wooden barns will be as scarce as covered bridges. New, modern steel buildings are fast to put up, cheap to build and are efficient, but you can’t beat an old barn for aesthetics.
If it had been summer, I’d have stopped to ask the owner if I could wander around. My desire to make art diminishes in direct proportion to the wind chill, so I was content to shoot these pictures from the roadside.
Other barn stories
- The Round Barn on South Sprigg
- A mystery barn
- Mystery barn identified as I. Ben Miller barn
- How to photograph a barn
- This barn served BBQ and had an oxbow of Cape LaCroix Creek behind it
Barn photo gallery
Click on any photo to make it larger, then click on the left or right side of the image to move through the gallery.
Photo 4. I was always in the loft opening waiting for the next bale. Unload,carry,stack,and come back for the next one while sweating from every pore! The meal when the work was done was second to none and the sweet tea was heaven!
Have you done a story on that old metal bridge near this barn? I’m curious about why a farm would have such a bridge, and I’m wondering if an old road went through there.
The Stoddard County Historical Society is supposed to be taking a historic tour of the old Cape to Bloomfield Road sometime this year. I think Dr. Nickell agreed to lead it. I’ve put my name in to go. I’m hoping they don’t sneak off without me; I’ve missed a bunch of the meetings.
The round barn on South Sprigg had a tree house nearby when I saw it in the late 1970s. Here is the photo along with a story about the barn by Ray Owen.
http://www.semissourian.com/blogs/flynch/entry/46666
My childhood playtime barn was in Gravel Hill, along Rt.34. It is still standing tall. Sad that barns are disappearing and sadder still that so many kids never had the opportunity to lie in the hay and listen to rain pound on the roof.