Old House Stories: Small Town Queen Anne — Tennessee River Country — Old Photo Album

Bunker Hill Standing Rock Road: Chapter Three - The Barn

The thing that needed attention soonest was the barn. As far as Tennessee barns go, it's a pretty old barn—built in 1913. How do I know the year? It's signed and dated on one of the boards inside. "RP Jan 6, 13" [click] So, in 2007, that makes the barn 94 years old. It's a sturdy barn and wherever the roof has stayed sound it is fine, but on the west side (the left-hand side as you look from the road) the roof has peeled back and allowed the water and sun to deteriorate the structure. A walnut tree grew up too close on that side and the wind causing it to rub against the edge of the roof has taken it's toll. Also, without a shed addition on that side as on the east, the afternoon sun shining on it for so many years hastened the process of deterioration.

The sill beams are hand-hewn and look to me like they were recycled from a log house I suspect was on the property before the present house. There are other log buildings in the area, and so I think my guess is a good one. [Pictures of other log buildings to come.] They are 6-7 inches thick and 8-10 inches wide, as if the house logs had been ripped in two longways and used that way. But one whole side of the barn has rotted sills, many nearly disappeared. I have plans to get three or four cedar trees that have blown down on the property and make them into new sills. Meanwhile for the framing.

I was talking to my neighbor and telling him about my plans to fix the barn. He said he has a stack of lumber he's been saving (and doesn't need to save any more), and he would love to sell it to me for 300 dollars. I took a look and wanted it. My nephew Ryan and his dad helped me move it and now it's in the barn. There are two-by-tens plus about 1500 feet of one-inch boards.