The English Barn
Benjamin Haskell’s Farm in 1870 The land: 29 Acres of Land: 20 Acres Improved 9 Acres Wooded
Barn
In the barn: Livestock: 1 Horse 2 Milk Cows Stores: 7 Tons of Hay 400 lbs of Butter 20 Bushels Peas and Beans 140 Bushels of Irish Potatoes
eastern bay, which was warmed by the sun in the winter. Dairy cows and horses could be kept in this bay, each separated by a rough barrier. Farmers could store hay in a loft above the animals to make feeding simpler and provide extra insulation for the animals during winter. Manure from the animals would often be kept either under or along the east side of the barn. When all the grain was stored away for the winter, the center bay was used to store tools and a wagon, if the family was wealthy. The space could also be used as a sheltered workspace, where farmers could repair their tools and work on smaller projects through the winter. While time spent in the fields was seasonal for the subsistence farmer, time in the barn was year-round. In the spring the farmer would go in and out of the barn taking manure to the fields and planting the new crops. In the summer the barn was busiest, as 34
the farmer filled the lofts with hay. During the fall, the farmer would work in the fields harvesting his crops and in the center bay threshing of grain. In the winter the fields lay empty, but the farmer would still be at work in the barn daily, feeding the animals and milking his cows in the side bay, and working on other miscellaneous projects in the center bay. While English barns were often used for subsistence farming and located close to one’s house, this was not always the case. In West Cornwall, Vermont, there is an exemplary case of an English barn that dates back to 1810. In 1870, Benjamin F. Haskell, resdent of West Cornwall and local wool and woolens dealer, owned the English barn, but lived three houses down the street, a long walk during a Vermont winter. Based on the agricultural census it would seem that Haskell’s main use of the barn was to house his horse, two milk cows, food for the three of them, and his own winter stores. As owner of a local store, it has been speculated that part of the barn may have served as sort of storehouse. Today, Mr. Haskell’s English barn serves a different purpose, being used as a space for table tennis and storage. This has been a common fate for most English barns as their agricultural function becomes obsolete. Indeed, while most of these barns do not serve their original purpose, they can still be found throughout the Northeastern landscape, repurposed as garages and small houses. And if one looks hard enough, one might find an English barn being used in its traditional manner, cows and all.