Rand and Tammy Faaborg of Radcliffe raised their little flock of children to know all about barns. The children are grown now, but the family still treasures the 1950s multi-purpose livestock barn that is the crown jewel of this farm that sits atop gently rolling hills in southeast Hamilton County.

The Faaborgs are among more than 90 Iowa farm families that will open their barns and farmsteads as part of the Iowa Barn Foundation’s annual fall tour of barns slated for Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 14 and 15.

The self-guided tour of barns invites folks who appreciate this unique piece of Iowa architecture to get off the four-lane highways and ramble at leisure along secondary roads to take in some Iowa history. 

Pack a picnic lunch and dine in the shade along the way, or plug your favorite ma and pa restaurant into your navigation device, and make a day of it cruising rural Iowa. Barns on the tour have received matching funds for restoration from the Iowa Barn Foundation, including many Award of Distinction and Preservation Award winners.

-Photo courtesy of Iowa Barn Foundation
The Clancy barn in Calhoun County was built by Lee and Maureen Olson in 1948, with the help of local carpenter George Julifs. 

Perhaps even more importantly, the barns are owned by people who appreciate the history of Iowa barns and are happy to welcome folks onto their farms for a visit and to celebrate the role that barns played in building American agriculture.

“We enjoy meeting different people that come out for the tour,” Tammy Faaborg said. “We’ve been on the tour for about five years, and we usually have about 30 to 60 people stop.”

Many of the folks will take pictures as they roam the barn. Others like to sit and hear stories about the barn’s history, often sharing their own memories of barns gone by.

“It really brings back a lot of good memories for people,” Tammy Faaborg said. “They will talk about the barns they had growing up, or barns that their grandparents had. They like to see how it was built, and tell us about the barns they remember.”

Purchased by the Faaborgs in 1986, their barn was built in 1950 by Ray Hammond. The 1950s were actually a bit of a boom time for barns.

-Photo courtesy of the Iowa Barn Foundation
The Rand and Tammy Faaborg family turned the haymow of their barn into a basketball court for games of “barn ball” with friends and neighbors.

“A lot of barns were built in the 1950s because that’s when lumber became more available again after World War II,” Tammy Faaborg explained.

The architecture of this barn makes it a “bank barn.” The north end is set into the ground lower than the south side to make for easy loading of livestock.

Designed to feed cattle, Rand Faaborg said his family has used the barn to house and feed just about any kind of animal that can be found on the farm.

“We had hogs in there for a long time,” he said. It has also been home to cattle, goats, chickens, and one lonely duck.

The barn was one of many buildings on the farm damaged by a tornado several years ago. The Faaborgs faced the decision of having to reroof the barn or take it down. In today’s agriculture, it seldom makes economic sense to restore a barn, but the family opted to look at more than the bottom line.

-Photo courtesy of Iowa Barn Foundation
Built in 1912, the Ferguson barn is located near Laurens in Pocahontas County.

“We couldn’t even get a quote to reshingle the roof,” Rand Faaborg recalled. Contractors simply said it would be too expensive.

As for doing it themselves, the family considered it, but the incredibly steep pitch made that a most unwelcome idea. They were humbled when they learned that one of Hammond’s daughters, who was pregnant at the time, was up on the roof helping when the barn was first built in 1950.

“We wouldn’t consider it, but back in 1950, a pregnant woman would get up there and work,” he said in amazement.

The Faaborgs opted to install a low-maintenance, cost-effective metal roof. Once shunned by the Iowa Barn Foundation, metal roofs are now welcomed. Because no building can really be saved without a good roof, the more affordable metal roofs are helping save more barns across the state.

That’s what it’s all about — saving barns, and telling their stories. At the Faaborgs’ home, the barn once welcomed neighbor kids to play a little “barn ball” in the haymow with basketball hoops set up and a freethrow line painted on the floor. The barn has even hosted a wedding reception for one of the daughters.

The Faaborg Barn, located at 3490 370th St., Radcliffe, is not one to be missed. To visit the farm on the barn tour, go east on D65 from Randall, across Interstate 35, and turn north on Young Avenue (R77), and then east on 370th Street. It’s an easy drive, with only a small stretch of gravel, and well worth the scenery along the way.

Mitchell Barn open in Webster County

In Webster County, the Matthew Mitchell barn is again on the tour of fall barns. Located at 2723 255th St., the barn was moved from its original home near Bradgate to Mitchell’s acreage a few years ago. It has been a family project and a labor of love to restore the barn and welcome visitors to learn about its rich history.

For those who have not seen it, this is a wonderful way to begin the weekend tour. A full listing of barns, complete with addresses and directions can be found on the Foundation’s website at iowabarnfoundation.org.

Other Messengerland area barns on the tour

Every barn has a story, and the fall tour is a great time to get away for the weekend.

Here is a sampling of some of the barns in shorter driving distances for central Iowans. Be sure to plan adequate time for each stop and for travel between the different farms.

• Calhoun County, Clancy Barn, 1866 Marengo Ave., Pomeroy. This barn was built by Lee and Maureen Olson in 1948, with the help of local carpenter George Julifs. In many ways, the barn was ahead of its time for the pre-fabrication that went into the construction. It wasn’t really prefab, but various pieces were first assembled in a machine shed before final construction. The Olsons owned the farm until 1962, when they sold it to Maureen Olson’s sister and her husband, Geraldine and Leo Clancey of Pomeroy.

• Greene County, the Thornburgh Home Place, 2201 R, Jamaica. This barn has earned the Iowa Barn Foundation’s Award of Distinction. All of the original buildings still stand at the family’s home place. This includes a 1930s milking barn with stanchions still in place.

• Greene County, Nicholson Barn, 294 240th St., Scranton. This barn is an excellent example of multi-use barns built in the early 1900s. From storage for grain and hay, to giving livestock a place to call home, this is the type of barn that did it all for farmers. Large boulders serve as the foundation for the barn, and pegged beams support the structure.

• Palo Alto County, Wigdahl Barn, 4030 360th Ave., Ruthven. This barn was built in 1936 and stands at 34-by-64 feet with red clay tile along the bottom. The owner’s two brothers owned a local hardware store. They designed a running water system for the barn and house, as well as a system using a kerosene motor to power a vacuum pump to milk 12 cows, all without electricity. The barn was later converted to farrowing and feeding pigs.

• Pocahontas County, Ferguson Barn, 40415 130th Ave., Laurens. With a working elevator, this barn and the matching “conehead” crib were built in 1912.