Historic Barns of Connecticut

Designations

• Local Historic District
• National Register

Historic Significance

Architectural description:

This complex has two barns, side by side with parallel ridge-lines:

Barn I is a 2 ½-story gable-entry barn. The main facade faces northwest and the ridge-line runs northwest-southeast, which is approximately perpendicular to Old Whitfield Street. The main entrance is an overhead garage door centered on the northwest gable-end. Pairs of multi-pane windows flank the entrance but have been boarded up. A pass-through door is located on the south half of the first story towards the southwest corner. The gable attic has a hay door with beveled corners. The northeast eave-side has a cross-gable located on the north half at the northwest corner, that is approximately 1/3 of the length of the eave-side. The northeast eave-side is blank. The southeast gable-end has an entrance centered on the first story and a hay door in the gable attic. The barn has vertical flush-boards. The roof has a slight projecting overhang and is covered in asphalt shingles. The foundation is concrete block.

Barn II is a 2 ½-story eave-entry barn. The main facade faces northeast and the ridge-line runs norrthwest-southeast. The main entrance appears to be a pass-through door located off-center towards the north on the northeast eave-side. North of this entrance is what appears to have been a pair of doors that has been partially filled in. South of the entrance are three windows on the first story and another pass-through door that is located near the east corner. South of this door, at the east end, the northeast elevation is stepped back. The southeast gable-end of the barn appears to have a pass-through door on the west half of the first story and a window opening in the gable attic. The southwest eave-side of the barn has a variety of openings, many of which have been boarded up. The first story has two pass-through doors that are evenly spaced in from each end. Between these two doors are four windows that have been boarded up. North of the doors and windows, near the west corner, is one more boarded-up window. The second story has a pass-through door located off-center towards the south. North of the door are three two-over-two-pane windows. The northwest gable-end of the barn has four evenly-spaced windows on the first story. The gable attic has a hay door with beveled corners and a hay hook above it. Two-pane windows flank the hay door. The barn has vertical flush-boards. The roof has projecting overhangs and is covered with asphalt shingles. The foundation is concrete.

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, as both types continued to be built.

Field Notes

Located at corner of Stone House Lane - barns are to north along the lane. 2 Barn structures in a decapitated state at edge of open field. Once red with vertical siding and an asphalt gable roof. Soon to be converted and rebuilt by Guilford Center for Children. Located in Whitfield Street Historic District. Located in Guilford Town Center Historic District, and appears to be a contributing resource within the district.

Use (Historic)

• dairy

Use (Present)

• re-use

Exterior Visible from Public Road?

1

Demolished

n/a

Location Integrity

Unknown

Related features

• Barn
• Other
• Stone Walls

Environment features

• Open Land
• Residential
• Woodland

Relationship to surroundings

The barn is located northeast of the house it is associated with. The ridge-line of the house runs perpendicular to that of the main barn. A second barn is located between the house and the main barn, and has a ridge-line that is paralell to that of the main barn. The second barn is a 2 ½-story English barn with a gable roof and a dropped girt line siding divide. Another builiding, which is possibly another house, is located south of the main house, and has a ridge-line that is paralell to that of the main barn. A stream or small river, running approximately northwest-southeast, defines the northeast border of the property. An unmortared fieldstone wall runs approximately northeast-southwest from the northeast corner of the main barn and along Stone House Lane for approximately 50 feet. The total size of the site is 9.04 acres. The surrounding area is open land, residential, and woodland.

Parcel ID: 033015.

Building Typology

• New England

Materials

• Concrete Block
• Flush-board
• Vertical Siding

Structural System

• Post & Beam
• Wood Frame

Roof materials

• Asphalt Shingle

Roof type

• Gable

Approximate Dimensions

Approximately 4320 sq. ft., 48' x 90' and 46' x 56'

Date Compiled

03/20/2011

Compiled By

B. Bjorklund & T. Levine, reviewed by CT Trust

Sources

Field notes by Dempsey Fitton, no date

Town of Guilford Assessor’s Record or GIS Viewer:
http://www.guilfordgis.com/AGS_Map/default.htm?MBL=033015
Parcel ID: 033015

Aerial Mapping:
http://maps.google.com accessed 03/20/2011
http://www.bing.com/maps accessed 03/20/2011

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 England, 1997, 61.

Raiche, Stephen J., Guilford Historic Town Center National Register Historic District Nomination No. 76001988, National Park Service, 1976.