Structures revealed in local, Smithsonian exhibits

A photo exhibit, created by the University's Center for Historic Architecture and Design to recognize Delaware's agricultural lands and architecture, is open at the Delaware Agricultural Museum and Village in Dover.

"Aglands: A Celebration of Delaware's Farms" uses photos and artifacts to tell the story of farmer and preservationist partnerships to save farms and protect architectural and agricultural traditions in the First State. It is designed to complement a traveling photo exhibit from the Smithsonian Institution that opened at the same museum Sept. 21. That exhibit, "Barn Again! Celebrating an American Icon," examines America's changing agricultural landscape and will include lectures by Center for Historic Architecture and Design director David L. Ames.

"Barn Again!" also uses photos and artifacts to show barns in all segments of American life, including their use in advertising. The exhibit examines various architectural styles of barns, explores the barn as a cultural icon and looks at the changing nature of agriculture. It includes the image of the barn in The Wizard of Oz and raises the issue of whether barns can and should be preserved.

The joint exhibit by the Smithsonian and the Delaware Humanities Forum will remain at the museum through Dec. 24, before moving to the Owens Campus of Delaware Technical & Community College in Georgetown and, finally, to Bellevue State Park near Wilmington. "Aglands" will remain at the agricultural museum through Feb. 25.

"The 'Aglands' exhibit will complement 'Barn Again!' " Jennifer Cathey, a graduate student in historic preservation who assembled the local exhibit, said. "It focuses entirely on agricultural land in Delaware, the different regions and the types of buildings. These buildings are important, because they represent changes that have occurred in agriculture, but they're easily lost to development and neglect."

The Retirement Barn, located near Biddles Corner in New Castle County and constructed between 1790 and 1810

Photo by David Ames

Betty A. Brewer, former executive director of the Delaware Agricultural Museum, said the exhibits will serve to remind visitors of the vital role agriculture plays in their daily lives.

"Although agriculture is still one of the top industries in Delaware and on the [Delmarva] Peninsula, the loss of aglands and associated structures to urban development is a serious concern," Brewer said.

"Barn Again!" has a great deal of relevance to Delaware, according to Ames, who is the Delaware Humanities Forum's project scholar for the exhibit and who contributed local photos to the display.

"Although very small, Delaware is at the nexus of several agricultural regions, each with distinctive agriculture and building traditions," Ames said. "The 'Barn Again!' exhibit will reflect this diversity."

He noted that the types of barns and other farm buildings commonly built in Delaware have changed over the years, reflecting changes in farming and development. Early buildings, from the time when agriculture in the state was based on grain, were generally of three types–large stone structures known as bank barns; three-bay barns, sometimes called Yankee or English barns; and gable-front barns, a style that spread to Delaware from the Eastern Shore areas of Maryland and Virginia.

After the 1830s, Ames said, farm buildings in the area began to reflect the progressive revolution in agricultural productivity, which emphasized efficiency on the farm and having "a place for everything and everything in its place." Delaware farmers began constructing outbuildings that combined multiple functions, and the large, hip-roofed bank barns became increasingly common, Ames said. Those multistoried barns began to incorporate such activities as stabling, milking and crop storage in a single structure, while corn crib/granaries, silos, cart sheds and other smaller outbuildings also sprang up.

In the early 20th century, Ames said, Delaware's agricultural production became more specialized to supply the rapidly expanding city markets. New types of buildings resulted: sweet potato houses in southern Delaware; large, gambrel-roofed barns to accommodate the rise of dairy farming in the central and northern parts of the state; and blocklike, windowless structures that marked the development of the mushroom industry, beginning in southeastern Pennsylvania and later spilling over into northern New Castle County.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for the citizens of Delaware to look at our barns with new perspectives and understanding," Patricia Palmer, a Delaware Humanities Council member who helped plan the museum exhibit here, said. "The barn is really appreciated for its integral place in farm life."

At the Georgetown and Bellevue locations, "Barn Again!" will include smaller exhibits of Delaware-related photos from the collection of the Center for Historic Architecture and Design.

"Almost the entire history of barns in North America, from Colonial settlement to the 21st century, can be found on the Delaware landscape," Ames said. "This exhibit presents much of that history."

Delaware is the only state in the mid-Atlantic region to host "Barn Again!" which is traveling to 24 states. The exhibit was organized by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service and the National Building Museum, with assistance from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

It is the second in a series of exhibitions and programs, called Museums on Main Street (MOMS), specially designed to serve museums, libraries and historical societies in rural areas. In Delaware, funding has been provided by the General Assembly and the Delaware Humanities Forum.

Ames will lecture at each of the exhibit sites, on dates to be determined.

Vol. 20, No. 4

Oct. 19, 2000

Vol. 20, No. 4

Oct. 19, 2000

Structures revealed in local, Smithsonian exhibits