My daughter & I have put our heads together and we believe the mystery object to be for picking up ice chips.

Irene

I am pleased to contribute to your wonderful piece. From your map research, I stand by my guess that this barn was a gable barn at the time of the dairy entries. The farm is between 11 and 16 years old when Mamie was born (I guessed the earliest year for the farm to be 1857 assuming that the establishment of the farm did not happen a moment after the 1856 map was published.) Within this time frame one can imagine the establishment of the farm to profitability and the loss of the two children you noted. From my perspective I would not expect a gambrel barn to be built in Michigan between 1857 and 1864. Only if the barn was brand new when Mamie was writing would I expect it to be a grambrel; and then it still may not have been. With only one year of dairy entries (which is all I think you have) it’s hard to flesh out the history, but its fun to try.

David

I really appreciate your putting in a plug for the Pittsfield Library’s barn raising here. I am looking forward to bringing this scaled model of a real barn to AA and to spending the afternoon talking about and building a barn. Working with this barn at different venues around the state has been incredibly rewarding and fun for many kids; and adults as well.

After we brought the barn to the Leland School System for a very aggressive program (all of the 3rd, 4th,7th and 8th graders in the school; 150 students in two days!) I wrote the following for the MBPN’s newsletter. “The barn was raised in a relatively short time frame transforming the 100 or so parts into one building; eliciting exclamations and applause each time. Shy kids were grinning ear to ear as the barn took shape. It was all we could do at times to keep a safe pace as seeing the first bent made them anxious to see the second, and then the third; it was a real building and they were building it themselves. The enthusiasm was absolutely contagious and spread from the students to the teachers; everyone lent a hand. And seeing everyone working side-by-side, helping each other regardless of age or position, was nothing short of magical.”

I think it is great opportunity to be a part of a real barn raising; and it is real. Even scaled-down this barn has to be erected just like a real barn and it takes many hands. I have now erected it many times and each time I still have a sense of accomplishment. It is also a wonderful opportunity for children, and adults, to spend some quality time considering how people have been building wooden buildings for thousands of years. Oh and we get to talk about barns and farming, a well as history and community, and so much more.

It is my desire to overwhelm the library with participants so I hope all of you will consider attending. Also all of you should know that if you have an event where this barn could prove to be valuable the MBPN would be interested to try to work with you. This barn has been to barn conventions, agricultural expositions, state fairs, schools, career expositions, heritage festivals all over the state and beyond and has been well received. If you would like more information feel free to contact me at cbultman@flash.net. You can also see photos of the barn at the MBPN’s website [link].

p.s.

David, I purposefully squandered the previous comment slot as I did not wish to have that number next to my comment. I hope you can understand.

I think this month’s item is for serving some food, maybe pasta or salad.

I’ve seen a smallish gable barn on Stony Creek Road south of AA, built on four little columns of stones at each corner. It looks quite old. I appreciate learning that gable barns were the onetime standard and that gambrel barns were a later innovation–this sort of information is key to drawing an accurate picture of the past, and I appreciate your kind help in doing so.

I would also add that there’s an super-fun looking event involving barn preservation, coming up on Sept. 15 from 1-5 p.m. at the Pittsfield branch of the Ann Arbor District Library:

Reconstruct a quarter-scale replica barn! Held in partnership with the Michigan Barn Preservation Network, this event is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to experience a traditional community barn raising. Common in Michigan during the late-19th and late-20th centuries, barn raisings were community gatherings where work was accomplished, traditions reinforced, and community was celebrated. For Grade 3 to adult.

Details here.