Historic Barns of Connecticut

Designations

n/a

Historic Significance

Architectural description:

This is a 1 ½ story gable-entry bank barn. The main facade faces east and the ridgeline of the barn is roughly parallel to Ashford Center Road, which runs approximately east-west. The main entry is a pair of hooded, oversized sliding doors in the center of the main façade. The sliding doors each have a fixed nine-paned window with trim. Above the hood is a fifteen-paned transom light. In the south corner of the front facade is a pass-through door with wrought iron hardware and in the north corner, below the siding divide, is a fixed eight-paned window with trim. The grade declines sharply at the south corner of the barn, revealing a basement level. The south eave-facade has four open bays supported by braced posts on the basement level. Above each bay-opening on the main level is a fixed eight-paned window with trim, except for the easternmost bay, which has a fixed nine-paned window with trim. The barn has vertical siding that was painted red and is now faded.  The roof of the barn is covered with asphalt shingles.

Historical significance:

The New England barn or gable front barn was the successor to the English barn and relies on a gable entry rather than an entry under the eaves. The gable front offers many practical advantages. Roofs drain off the side, rather than flooding the dooryard. With the main drive floor running parallel to the ridge, the size of the barn could be increased to accommodate larger herds by adding additional bays to the rear gable end. Although it was seen by many as an improvement over the earlier side-entry English Barn, the New England barn did not replace its predecessor but rather coexisted with it.

The 19th century also saw the introduction of a basement under the barn to allow for the easy collection and storage of a winter’s worth of manure from the animals sheltered within the building. The bank barn is characterized by the location of its main floor above grade, either through building on a hillside or by raising the building on a foundation. This innovation, aided by the introduction of windows for light and ventilation, would eventually be joined by the introduction of space to shelter more animals under the main floor of the barn.

Field Notes

n/a

Use (Historic)

• agriculture

Use (Present)

• unknown

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

Yes

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Unknown

Related features

• Barn

Environment features

• Residential
• Rural

Relationship to surroundings

The barn is north of the c 1749 house with which it is associated. The ridgeline of the barn and the ridgeline of the house are perpendicular to one another. The L-shaped 2.83 acre site is demarcated by lines of trees and the grade inclines from south to north. The area surrounding the site is light residential and heavy woodland.

Map/Block/Lot : 35/ B/ 5/+ /

Building Typology

• New England Bank

Materials

• Fieldstone
• Vertical Siding

Structural System

• Post & Beam
• Wood Frame

Roof materials

• Asphalt Shingle

Roof type

• Gable

Approximate Dimensions

960 S.F.

Date Compiled

03/01/2010

Compiled By

T. Levine and S. Lessard, reviewed by CT Trust

Sources

Photography by Joseph Szalay - 09/17/2009

Ashford’s online assessors database, Vision Appraisal: http://data.visionappraisal.com/AshfordCT/findpid.asp?iTable=pid&pid=1221

Town of Ashford’s assessors records: Account #00131200, 35/B/5/+/, Barn 960 Sq. Ft.

Aerial Mapping: Ashford Maps
www.bing.com/maps - accessed 5/26/2011.

Sexton, James, PhD, Survey Narrative of the Connecticut Barn, Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, Hamden, CT, 2005, http://www.connecticutbarns.org/history.

Visser, Thomas D.,Field Guide to New England Barns and Farm Buildings, University Press of New