[MassHistPres] Cold-storage barn in early 1900s

[Dennis De Witt]

Don't forget the long 19th C history of building ice houses.  I'm sure there is contemporaneous published material on that.

Dennis De Witt


On Dec 22, 2009, at 7:48 AM, Cindy Brockway wrote:

> Castle Hill (Ipswich) has a complex of stone and stucco barns built starting
> in 1914 by Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge but under the advice of consultant
> Edward Burnett.  Burnett managed his family's farm in Southborough MA then
> became manager for such notable gentleman's farm operations as Biltmore.  He
> served as advisor to a number of architects on barn technology and
> construction, including Alfred Hopkins who published two books on farm
> design, Planning for Sunshine and Fresh Air in Modern Farm Buildings.  There
> are many examples of stone barns on gentleman farms in RI as well, including
> this Knight estate in Warwick. I would take a look at these publications and
> see if the Larsen barn was built using this new technology.  The Castle Hill
> barns were for dairy.  I can't remember if there is an apple barn there as
> well.
> 
> As for the value of stone walls which you have all been talking about, they
> are critically important in tracing land subdivision patterns in New
> England.  I have used the records of them and their physical remains in
> tracing landscape histories in all six states.  Most of the stone walls
> delineate some of the earliest land subdivisions/improvements/purchases and
> later generations delineate second and third generations of land
> subdivision.  In cases where walls have been removed, we have been able to
> trace the footing stones which are partially or fully buried under the
> surface to define these land histories, but it is always easier to trace the
> boundaries using above-ground historic resources.  Many of the walls are
> most visible in the series of aerial photographs taken in the 1930's by
> federal government agencies for planning and road studies.  Walls are also
> delineated in New Hampshire records in their study and of the white pine
> blister rust (1930's) as they believed that the disease was harbored in
> pines and junipers growing up along old walls.  Please protect these
> resources whenever possible for both their legal and historic value.
> 
> Cindy Brockway
> Past Designs
> Kennebunk ME
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu
> [mailto:masshistpres-bounces at cs.umb.edu] On Behalf Of Susan McLaughlin
> Sent: Monday, December 21, 2009 7:06 PM
> To: masshistpres at cs.umb.edu
> Subject: [MassHistPres] Cold-storage barn in early 1900s
> 
> 
> The Town of Stow has an historic structure known as the Larsen Apple Barn, a
> farm building with very thick stone walls. It was built by Peter Larsen in
> roughly 1918 to store apples and other produce for his farm and local
> farmers. It is said to have been state-of-the-art cold storage in its time,
> allowing farmers to store surplus produce until demand increased after the
> harvest season and brought them higher prices. 
> 
> We are wondering how unique this building is. Are there similar structures
> in your towns? Or do you know of others in Massachusetts?
> 
> Many thanks.
> Susan McLaughlin
> Stow Historical Commission member 
> susanmc1 at earthlink.net
> 
> 
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