Field barn

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Field barn near Langcliff Cross, UK Field Barn near Langcliff Cross - geograph.org.uk - 2555314.jpg
Field barn near Langcliff Cross, UK

A field barn is an outbuilding located in a field, some distance ("further afield") from farmer's residence or the main cluster of buildings that constitute a farmstead. [1] Field barns were necessary when arable fields or valuable pastures were located some distance from a village or the residences of the agricultural workers who tended the fields. [2] Rather than "commuting" back and forth to the field with livestock, tools, or harvests, the field barn allowed on-site storage (usually of straw, hay, and additional feed), as well as providing shelter for herds during inclement weather or when pregnant cattle or sheep needed respite and a clean place to labor. [2] Field barns were also used for the drying and curing of hay, which protected the nutritional content of the crop better than drying and curing in the field. [3]

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In English agricultural history, many farms ended up "pie-shaped" (in order to connect the farm to the central village) and field barns were constructed at the distant wide end. [4] Early examples in Staffordshire were essentially just a shed, those latterly built often had a foldyard and an additional shelter shed. [5] Field barn construction began to decline with the rise of mechanized threshing. [5]

Field barns in England

Stone field barn ruin in England Ruined barn - geograph.org.uk - 1260146.jpg
Stone field barn ruin in England

Historic England have been mapping field barns and outfarms across England and have noted that 72% have disappeared since 1900. They have confirmed the significance of these structures noting that: [1]

Some county-based research projects have been carried out by the County Councils:

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 Lake, Jeremy (2014). National Farmsteads Character Statement. London: Historic England.
  2. 1 2 Coulthard, Sally (2021-11-11). The Barn: The Lives, Landscape and Lost Ways of an Old Yorkshire Farm. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN   978-1-80024-087-2.
  3. Technical Bulletin. U.S. Department of Agriculture. 1953. p. 35.
  4. Hart, John Fraser (1998-04-10). The Rural Landscape. JHU Press. p. 129. ISBN   978-0-8018-5717-1.
  5. 1 2 Peters, J. E. C. (1969). The Development of Farm Buildings in Western Lowland Staffordshire Up to 1880. Manchester University Press. p. 31.
  6. "Suffolk Heritage Explorer". heritage.suffolk.gov.uk. Suffolk County Council. Retrieved 27 April 2023.