Governor Jim Douglas has announced $208,723 in Historic Preservation Barn Grants that will be awarded to 25 farms (see list below) to help make repairs needed to keep the barns in use. In a ceremony at the Dodge Farm in Berlin, which received $10,000 to repair its barn roof, the governor noted that the program promoted two of Vermont s most important industries, agriculture and tourism.
Our farms are more than just providers of jobs and bonds to our agricultural past, they boost our tourism industry by preserving our working landscape, Governor Douglas said. Preserving these magnificent barns for future generations isn t just good for the view, it s good for our economy.
The farm s owners, Kristen Gallagher and Loren Thompson, purchased it in July 2009 with the assistance of the Vermont Land Trust, and have set up a farming operation there that will include a Community Sponsored Agriculture program (CSA) as well as small-scale livestock operations.
This grant is an important step in helping move our vision of a sustainable farm operation forward, Gallagher said.
A fifth generation Vermonter with a degree in Ecological Agriculture from the University of Vermont, she spent two years working on small organic family farms in Switzerland and Chile, and later worked at a farm in Charlotte where she milked goats and made cheese from the product.
In addition to the CSA, we re hoping to put a community canning room; a space for educational and art programs for children; and possibly a cheesemaking facility here in this barn, Gallagher said.
The grant program, administered by the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, provides owners of agricultural buildings with matching funding of up to $10,000 for a variety of capital repairs. Eligible projects include repairs to roofs, foundations, walls, sills and overall stabilization.
In making decisions on funding, the Vermont Advisory Council on Historic Preservation prioritizes projects, giving particular emphasis to working barns to keep them in service and significant agricultural buildings in critical need of repair.
There is a great deal of competition for these grants, because there are so many more worthy projects than we can afford to fund, Governor Douglas said. Money is tight, but we must make the investments in our infrastructure that we can afford, and these grants encourage the barns owners to invest in their upkeep and preservation.
Since its inception more than twenty years ago, the program has provided more than $1.5 million and leveraged many millions more to bring new life to more than 200 historic agricultural buildings.
Every year we lose some of these landmarks to age, but these modest grants help stem that tide, Douglas said. The owners of these barns deserve our thanks for taking action to preserve them.
For more information, visit the Division for Historic Preservation site at: http://www.historicvermont.org/financial/barn.html
2010 Barn Grants
TOWN
PROPERTY
AMOUNT
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
N. Pomfret
Cedar Haven Farm
$10,000
Repair stone foundation, improve drainage, repair frame
Peacham
Worcester-Hooker Farm
$10,000
Repair stone foundation, improve drainage, repair frame
Topsham
Twinflower Highlands Farm
$4,295
Replace posts, stone bases and concrete piers
Cavendish
Abbott Farm
$10,000
Repair foundation, frame, and roof
Waterford
West View Farm
$3,565
Repair sill and siding, restore windows
Cavendish
McNamara Barn
$4,800
Relay stone wall, replace sill, replace roof
Royalton
Martin/Crawford Barn
$10,000
Reset foundation, point brick, replace missing windows, complete carpentry and roof repairs
Castleton
Eagan Farm
$10,000
Repair frame, rafters, foundation, roof and siding
Londonderry
Sled Hill Farm
$5,200
Rebuild piers, replace posts, improve drainage, repair siding, roof, sill, dairy floor, haymow and platform, replace broken windows
Rockingham
Diliberto Barn
$10,000
Repair/brace framing, repair siding, doors, windows, sills and roof
Peacham
Green Bay Farm
$2,250
Repair foundation, replace sills, secure damaged joints, replace sheathing
Pawlet
Consider Bardwell Farm
$10,000
Rebuild brick walls, replace missing framing, replace broken/missing windows
Corinth
Hutchinson Farm
$10,000
Replace timbers, repair windows, replace roof, repair/replace sills, corner post, and siding
Colchester
Farmhouse Center
$3,505
Install drainage, replace tie beam and windows, install wrought iron door handles, stain exterior, repair cupola
Ryegate
Old McLure Farm
$10,000
Repair roof, install new foundation
Richmond
Timber Hill Farm
$10,000
Install tie rods, level posts, repair foundation, replace sill, repair roof and siding.
Dummerston
Sheep's Nose Barn
$10,000
Secure foundation, improve drainage, repair/replace sills, posts and beams
Rochester
Harvey Barn
$10,000
Repair foundation, install new footings, repair frame, posts and bracing, repair cupola roof and siding, repair doors
S. Burlington
Stone House Farm
$10,000
Relay stonework, replace sills, repair posts, replace cladding
Brandon
Spotted Dog Farm
$10,000
Repair windows and doors, replace siding, repair/replace slates on cupola, install hay door
Greensboro
Greensboro Barn
$10,000
Reset foundation, repair roof, high drive doors and surrounds, repair dormer, cornice and eaves, and replace floor joists and flooring
Barnet
Joe's Brook Farm
$10,000
Install foundation, improve drainage, replace/repair sill, posts and footings, repair sheathing and doors, repair and paint roof
Ryegate
Wild Rose Farm
$5,108
Replace concrete wall and floor, replace deteriorated clapboard, sill and beams, rebuild doorway
Barnet
Bogie Mountain Dairy
$10,000
Repair roof, install roof on cupola, replace beams, repair/replace doors and silo roof
Berlin
Dodge Farm
$10,000
Replace roof
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Source: Governor's office. 4.8.2010