A Family Barn Raising In Ohio

Large wooden barns have been a northwest Ohio farm staple since the 1800s, sheltering livestock, providing enclosed work areas and offering storage for hay, straw, grain and farm equipment. A "barn raising" was often a community event in which neighbors, friends and family members of all ages gathered to construct a barn. While men worked on the barn, youngsters carried water for thirsty workers and fetched needed items, and women prepared bountiful meals for the participants. This May 1911 photograph shows a group of 41 men, women and children at a barn raising on the Wade Rethmel farm on Rethmel Road south of Evansport. The barn, which still stands, is now owned by Don and Anita Rethmel. As time passed, wooden barns fell into disfavor due to changes in farming and livestock management practices, larger farm equipment and less maintenance intensive building alternatives. The numerous historic barns that once dotted the local landscape continue to disappear as the years pass, severing an historical tie with the area's early agricultural methods.