These old barns: Many are toiling in an effort to save farm buildings from demolition
07-06-06 - North America — United States, Connecticut
Kip Farrell stood by helplessly a few years ago as she watched a bulldozer raze a historic red barn off Elm Street in New Canaan.
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A neighbor tipped her off that morning that a developer was planning to demolish the barn and she ran outside to catch one last look before it was torn down. "I went out in the pouring rain, and you could just smell the hay," said Farrell, a New Canaan resident. "The guy with the bulldozer had a big smile on his face. Just seeing that one barn being destroyed just set me off."
Since that day, Farrell, affectionately known in New Canaan as the "barn lady," has been on a mission to preserve the town's remaining 170 barns, 30 of which date from 1724 to 1899. She has driven up and down practically every foot of the town's 348 ridges, lanes and streets with her Nikon camera in hand, climbing over stone walls to photograph every barn she spots from the road.
Her passion for the old farm buildings has transformed her into the town's leading barn preservationist. With the help of the New Canaan Historical Society, she helped push a regulation through the town's planning and zoning commission about two years ago that discourages homeowners from demolishing barns on their property by exempting historic barns from land coverage restrictions. She also recently helped push through legislation for a 90-day demolition delay of historic structures.
"I can't tell you how many times I have been to Town Hall and screamed and yelled," said Farrell, who hopes to publish a book about New Canaan's barns. "The town very late has decided to finally get on board saving barns and old historic houses, but it's been a long fight."
Farrell is one of a number of barn preservations in the state trying to save the buildings, which were used mostly in the 18th and 19th centuries to store farm products or to house farm animals. The barns are remnants of the state's agricultural past, which was vibrant until the middle of the 20th century.
"When people think of Connecticut, they think of trees and covered bridges and big red barns, so it is important for us as a state to recognize this and keep our culture intact," said Todd Levine, an architectural historian with the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation. "
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