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design that could be octagonal, polygonal, or circular in plan. Though round barns were not as popular as some other barn designs, their unique shape makes them noticeable. The years from 1880 to 1920 represent the height of round barn construction. Round barn construction in the United States can be
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The "True
Circular Era" of round barn construction spanned from 1889 to 1936, overlapping the octagonal era and finally dwindling out as round barns fell out of popularity. True circular round barns began to rise as improvements in construction techniques made their design more practical. As balloon
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The rise in popularity and the promotion of round barns occurred surrounding the new focus on efficiency. The circular shape has a greater volume-to-surface ratio than a square barn. Regardless of size, this made round barns cheaper to construct than similar-sized square or rectangular barns because
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Other historians discount Fowler's influence on the beginning of the round barn era in the United States. Soike asserts that Fowler did not have any direct connection with any octagonal round barns. He noted that the octagon had ceased to be the basis for building constructions by the Civil War. In
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systems for the arched roof was also seen as an advantage. In the
Midwest, particularly, the buildings were thought more resilient against prairie thunderstorms. The interior layout of round barns was promoted as more efficient, since farmers could work in a continuous direction. In the days before
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Despite considerable publicity of the 1826 Shaker barn, the design did not become popular until the 1880s, when some agricultural colleges began to push the design as they taught progressive farming methods, based on the principles of industrial efficiency. It was between 1880 and 1920 that round
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The "Octagonal Era" of round barn design stretched from about 1850 until 1900. Round barns, such as
Washington's, were often multi sided in their earliest incarnations. Multi-sided round barns came in a variety of polygonal shapes, including layouts of six, eight, nine, ten, twelve, fourteen and
344:. The interior design of round barns shifted as well. The early round barns had cattle stanchions on the first floor with the whole of the loft used for hay and feed storage. Later barns possessed a central space which rose up from the ground level through the entire building. The cattle
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program, eliminated the advantages of labor-saving designs that were more complicated to build, and the popularity of round barns faded. Regardless, numerous round barns were constructed during the period of popularity the design enjoyed, and a large number still stand today.
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and truly self-supporting roofs were developed, circular barns superseded polygonal structures and began to be built in greater number. Despite the gains in popularity for circular barns, polygonal barns continued to be built up through the height of the True
Circular Era.
268:, and round barn construction had tapered off considerably. Several reasons have been given for the decline in the popularity of round barn designs. The standardization of the construction industry and the resulting decline in timber framing following the
448:, hosts the annual Round Barn Festival in early June to assert Fulton County's status as the "Round Barn Capital of the World". The city also houses the Round Barn Golf Club at Mill Creek, whose clubhouse is in the renovated Gerig Round Barn.
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Claims of round barn efficiency were overstated. The round barn never caught on as a standard barn, as some of those pushing the progressive, efficiency-based agricultural methods had hoped. The spread of machinery, especially with the
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of the impact of the
University of Illinois round barns can be collected from farmers today. Stories about fathers and grandfathers recollect round barns being constructed on account of what was going on "over at the University".
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extolling the virtues of the octagonal shape in home construction. The book included a discussion on use of the shape in barns and other outbuildings. The book generated a flurry of octagonal home construction, especially in the
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There are about 20 surviving historic round barns in Canada. The United States has several hundred. In Europe, round barns are common, but there are some notable ones much older than those in North
America.
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It is known that prominent agricultural colleges began to promote the design technique as round barns came to prominence. However, the provider of the initial impetus is the subject of some debate. In 1848
326:, the barn was built with a rock wall around an inner stable area, and included a covered run around the wall where horses could be exercised during the harsh high desert winters.
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led to an increase in the style's popularity statewide. This was partly due to the
University of Illinois's Agricultural Experiment Station's publishing regular "Bulletins". The
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through the center of the structures. These were not really added until silos became fixtures of
American farms. Sometimes the central silo would project up through the roof.
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states. Some researchers have linked the earliest round barn constructions with Fowler's popular book because so many of the early round barns assumed the octagonal shape.
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was constructed to rise up through the round barn's center. The round barn was promoted as a labor-saving design by agricultural colleges as a progressive way to house
532:), National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form, NRIS Database, National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 8 February 2007
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An old belief that the barns were round to keep the devil from hiding in the corners may have helped drive the popularity of round barn construction.
575:(PDF), National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form, NRIS Database, National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 8 February 2007
415:, for example, 219 round barns were constructed between 1850 and 1936; of those, 67 were polygonal, including 17 eight-sided barns built after 1900.
682:, (PDF), National Register of Historic Places Registration Form, HAARGIS Database, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Retrieved 19 April 2007
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era, spanned from 1850 to 1900. The second, the true circular era, spanned from 1889 to 1936. The overlap meant that round barns of both types,
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By the 1920s round barn construction had begun to decline in some locations. In
Illinois, the popularity of round barns was in part due to the
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and circular, were built during the latter part of the nineteenth century. Numerous round barns in the United States are listed on the
694:, Taking Care of Your Old Barn, University of Vermont, Vermont Division for Historic Preservation. Retrieved 7 February 2007
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Designed in a distinctive circular shape, many of these barns were meant to take advantage of gravity to move hay from the
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on the lower level. Above the stanchion level a circular wagon drive allowed hay to be unloaded into the central
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The earliest round barns tend to have several flat sides, usually twelve or sixteen. They also tend to be
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The interest in round barns spread to
California in the later 19th century and several were built there.
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829:: article covering reconstruction effort of Washington's round barn. Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens
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197:, a well-preserved example built in the late 1870s by local settler and businessman Isaac De Turk.
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as the wagon circled the perimeter. The final stage of interior design in round barns included a
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they required less materials. The structural stability is also enhanced over that of a typical
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817:: Kansas State Board of Agriculture, Eighteenth Biennial Report, 1911–12, pp. 139–42.
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706:"National Register of Historic Places Registration: Ojo Caliente Hot Springs Round Barn"
624:, University of Illinois Campus Tours, University of Illinois. Retrieved 7 February 2007
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is one possible reason. Another possibility is that the mechanization of American
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Reconstructing the Round Barn at Fort Crook Museum. Fall River Mills, California
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in 1793. The first truly round barn in North America was constructed in 1826 at
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designed and built a sixteen-sided threshing barn at his Dogue Run Farm in
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Advantages and disadvantages claimed for round barns are quite numerous.
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tended to have interior spaces that were more rectangular than circular.
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barns were most popular in the United States, especially in the Midwest.
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http://www.theredmile.com/redmile/our-track/virtual-tour/round-barn
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coupled with an article by H.C. Crouch touting round barns in the
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University of Illinois Experimental Dairy Farm Historic District
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A Home For All: Of the Gravel Wall and Octagon Mode of Building,
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in this variation of round barn were arranged around a circular
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sixteen sides. Polygonal barns constructed before the advent of
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mechanization, labor-saving features were a big selling point.
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led to the construction of round barns across the state.
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deal primarily with North America and do not represent a
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shaped barn. Simplified construction lacking elaborate
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Round barns date to the 18th and early 19th century.
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111:divided into two overlapping eras. The first, the
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32:The examples and perspective in this article
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421:In the Midwest, especially in Illinois, the
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224:Tim Thering Octagon Barn (Plain Wisconsin)
423:round barns at the University of Illinois
70:Learn how and when to remove this message
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815:Efficiency of the Round barn
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452:Distribution of round barns
46:, discuss the issue on the
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16:Circular storage building
779:"A Brief Description..."
734:Roger L. Welsch (1970).
573:North Dakota Round Barns
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431:Illinois Agriculturalist
307:below. In many cases, a
148:Fairfax County, Virginia
870:Rotundas (architecture)
136:Thomas Ranck Round Barn
875:Agricultural buildings
736:Nebraska's Round Barns
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320:Pete French Round Barn
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290:Pete French Round Barn
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191:Santa Rosa, California
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152:Hancock Shaker Village
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810:at Wikimedia Commons
765:"Round Barn Festival"
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382:Ten-sided barn near
52:create a new article
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827:Sleuthing for Clues
692:Historic Barn Types
473:List of round barns
458:List of round barns
318:In the case of the
84:List of round barns
663:City of Santa Rosa
442:Rochester, Indiana
435:Anecdotal evidence
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384:Mauston, Wisconsin
324:Frenchglen, Oregon
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294:Frenchglen, Oregon
270:American Civil War
251:framing, circular
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195:De Turk Round Barn
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95:The round barn at
821:Shaker Round Barn
806:Media related to
505:Auer, Michael J.
444:, county seat of
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855:Round barns
808:Round barns
723:four photos
622:Round Barns
597:. pp.
401:New England
303:to the cow
274:agriculture
849:Categories
782:Retrieved
715:7 December
394:published
374:Influences
346:stanchions
171:Santa Rosa
138:in Indiana
104:round barn
595:Routledge
365:hay hoods
215:Octagonal
156:Civil War
117:polygonal
113:octagonal
48:talk page
467:See also
60:May 2023
42:You may
413:Indiana
127:History
784:29 May
605:
350:manger
339:glazed
305:stable
280:Design
860:Barns
739:(PDF)
721:with
484:Notes
335:brick
322:near
292:near
253:silos
183:truss
50:, or
786:2014
717:2016
603:ISBN
478:Barn
403:and
342:tile
331:wood
309:silo
301:loft
108:barn
661:,"
599:545
530:PDF
528:, (
354:mow
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
