“I agreed to buy this acreage without my husband knowing about it right away,” said Deb Ruberg, who noted that she and Lonnie bought the property in 1993. “I saw potential for this place.”

While Deb Ruberg had grown up on a Humboldt County farm near Thor, Lonnie was a town kid who hadn’t lived in the country before. It didn’t take long, however, before he enjoyed country living as much as Deb does.

The barn has long been a key part of the Ruberg’s Lake Township property, which the Clancy family owned for decades. The Rubergs purchased the acreage from long-time owners Keith and Wanda (Clayton) Brayton. It’s unclear exactly when the barn was built, Deb Ruberg said. A Clancy family member thought the distinctive clay-block barn and silo were built in the late 1800s, while Humboldt County assessor’s records say they were built in 1915.

“The barn was built before the house,” said Deb Ruberg, whose farmhouse was built in 1918.

Through the years, the barn has housed a variety of livestock, including cattle, horses, pygmy goats and hogs, which were raised in the south side of the barn. Previous generations even raised chickens in the hayloft, noted Deb Ruberg, who added that there were water hydrants in the hayloft.

The barn was amazingly tidy when the Rubergs purchased the property.

“The barn was in great condition and was really clean,” Deb Ruberg said. “We didn’t have to do much more than remove 50 cans of used paint that had been stored in the hayloft.”

After the Rubergs moved to their acreage, it wasn’t long before Deb started hosting a craft show known as the Heartland Boutique in the barn around 1996. She was inspired by a lady who owned a barn near Waseca, Minnesota, and hosted craft shows there.

“The Heartland Boutique offered a little bit of everything,” said Deb Ruberg, who hosted the event in May and September each year for about six or seven years. “We’d display vendors’ items in the barn, from crafts to quilts to homemade jams and jellies.”

Lonnie Ruberg also sold wooden shelves, pie safes and other items he built in his woodworking shop, which he created in the north side of the barn. Customers could stop by and browse the merchandise, which was supplied by 20 to 30 vendors. The items were showcased throughout the barn’s main floor and the haymow.

Deb Ruberg, her mother, Ruberg’s daughter, Cassie, and Ruberg’s friend from Gowrie ran the Heartland Boutique, which grew to include a food vendor.

“We did a lot of advertising and mailed postcards to promote the boutique,” said Ruberg, whose team gave customers metal buckets that functioned as shopping baskets.

The event thrived until big-box stores and online retail giants began selling more craft and home decor items at prices that entrepreneurs could never match.

While the Heartland Boutique is now part of the barn’s history, Deb Ruberg is glad the barn is still part of the acreage. She enjoys photographing barns when she and her husband take motorcycle trips.

“I’ve always been interested in barns,” Ruberg said. “As a farm girl, I hate seeing barns torn down.”

Every barn is unique, she added. “I love barns. I’m glad our barn has been well-used and well-loved.”