IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK...
(A story as told by the barn)
It was a blustery day in the winter of 2000. It started as any other day, but by mid-morning a most unusual thing happened. I had visitors. Now, bear in mind, I never have anyone come to see ME – they come to see my contents, to put something away or remove something, but they rarely take the time to LOOK at ME. And here was this very friendly couple walking around me, talking, measuring, chatting with my owners, examining every part of me even those parts which have shown my years of hard work, neglect, withstanding the elements, i.e., those things I’d rather not show anybody, let alone strangers. They discussed my condition, my future, even my age – which I, myself, do not even remember. Let’s see, it must be at least 140 years, maybe 150? They could tell from the water-sawn marks on my beams. I’m so old, my memory is going….
This was my first encounter with Sam and Peggy Stitt. They discussed with my owners at great length something they called “restoration” and I found myself strangely intrigued. I listened carefully as I gathered that this was going to involve me to a great extent. Little did I know!!! They discussed the process they would follow, the timetable, the estimate, and myriad details, like my lady-owner wanted to keep as much of my “original fabric” as possible, and the Stitts seemed to think that was very workable. When they departed that day, there was much happiness and excitement in the air and much talk of the “restoration” which would begin in the fall.
Then it was back to normal for me and I nearly forgot all the excitement, until my owners started emptying me out. Accumulation from decades had piled up, and they worked diligently to get it all out – a rather confusing flurry of activity, but it felt good to get all aired out.
Finally the BIG DAY arrived, bringing with it “Great Lakes Barn Preservation, LLC. On a sunny September morning, in no time at all, all my doors and windows were removed and many measurements were taken. The crew flew into action, clearly knowing the routine and exactly what step came next. As my old, original siding was removed, I winced a few times, until I realized that it would all be put back in place, with nice new wood over it, more snug than ever. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
There were several big projects and Sam had such a wonderful way with me – strong, careful, and diligent and he knew just how to accomplish this “preservation.” My roof had sagged over the years (I’ve heard of people sagging, but it’s nothing like this). Using cable to straighten my sides and roof beams, they coaxed my rafters back into proper alignment and secured the cables in the hay loft to keep me true and straight. Also, they removed all the old stones which had served as my foundation for over a century. I felt like I was dangling in space, but the Stitts’ crew carefully built me a new, better foundation with all my supporting timbers sistered into preserved beams and secured in concrete footings. OHHH, the security that gave me. But my southeast corner had succumbed to the power of a Mulberry tree with its massive roots wrapped tightly around my foundation of bolders. It was quite a day when the Stitts shored up that side of me in order to extract that web of roots. With the sudden freedom from that entanglement, I was so excited, I quite forgot myself and “shifted” right then and there. This was probably their worst day on the job, and I did feel badly for not being fully cooperative. But, once again, they gently coaxed me back into the upright and square position and kept me very secure.
Once all this foundational and squaring work was done, they began to work on the finished product. My owners, who had enthusiastically watched every development, were frequently consulted about numerous details: location of doors and windows, type of floor (concrete was chosen for the work portion, dirt for the stalls.), application of rough-sawn siding over my old boards which were being reattached, etc.
My owners were particularly pleased with the Stitts’ attention to detail and something they called “historical accuracy.” My old 2” x 18” floorboards were saved and milled for use as interior walls. Trees were felled and new beams were lumbered and placed next to the old hand hewn beams and now visitors can hardly tell the difference. There were extensive conversations about how out-of-place “OSB” would look on the floor of my loft, since it would also be the ceiling of my work area. The Stitts were incredible. They laid new, but weathered boards first, with the OSB on top, so that my loft is very secure, but the appearance of my work area could be taken to be late 1800’s.
Then came the “pretty part” as my owners said. It was time to paint me. My repaired roof got attention first – beautiful silver spray paint. And I wasn’t the only thing that turned silver; leaves off the nearby walnut were also decked out in silver. Rather pretty. Anyway, my roof was beautiful and now able to withstand the elements. Then true barn-red paint was applied to my new wood siding. My owners consulted Peggy extensively on determining trim decorations. My windows and vertical corner beams were to be white, with white arches on my double front doors. It seemed to me to be very artistically chosen.
The month’s work drew to a close and the Stitts packed up their equipment and bid farewell. It was such an exhilarating experience, I kinda hated to see it end, but there was more to come as I settled back into work. I now serve many functions which I could not have performed previously: hay storage in my hayloft with a chute for dropping it down and two doors for proper ventilation; front and back doors to allow tractor drive-through; relatively air tight housing for 4H rabbits; a secure tack room; stalls and a grain room for horses and donkeys, etc. And one other thing – all those beautiful old rocks and boulders from my foundation have been used to landscape around the old foundations of other barns, now long-gone. It’s nice to know they are still nearby.
I know my owners think the Stitts did the best job imaginable. One wintry day last year (what is it about wintry days and barn restoration?) a man stopped by to meet ME and see the transformation the Stitts performed on me. My owners showed me off real well, including lots of pictures, and I have heard that man had his barn “restored.” Let’s see, does that make us cousins?
So if any of you barns out there are thinking about this thing called restoration, call Sam & Peggy Stitt at Great Lakes Barn Preservation, LLC. They are the greatest! There aren’t so many of us old barns around anymore; we need to be saved for another century.
P.S. My owners said to tell you that they would give Sam and Peggy Stitt the highest recommendation. They were awesome!
By Laura Lazet
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Homestead 1920 - Mason, MI
Before Restoration
Removing the Mulberry before the big shift
New Pine Siding
Job completed - 2000
Foundation stones were used in landscaping
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