The Dennis Otte Round Barn is a round barn in the U.S. state of Illinois near the unincorporated Stephenson County community of Eleroy. The barn was built in 1930 by Herman Altenbern and has a diameter of 54 feet (16.5 m). The barn is representative of the last round barn design variations that evolved. The Otte Round Barn was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
A round barn is a historic barn design that could be octagonal, polygonal, or circular in plan. Though round barns were not as popular as some other barn designs, their unique shape makes them noticeable. The years from 1880–1920 represent the height of round barn construction. Round barn construction in the United States can be divided into two overlapping eras. The first, the octagonal era, spanned from 1850–1900. The second, the true circular era, spanned from 1889–1936. The overlap meant that round barns of both types, polygonal and circular, were built during the latter part of the nineteenth century. Numerous round barns in the United States are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are currently 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory and shares its sovereignty with the federal government. Due to this shared sovereignty, Americans are citizens both of the federal republic and of the state in which they reside. State citizenship and residency are flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states, except for persons restricted by certain types of court orders. Four states use the term commonwealth rather than state in their full official names.
Illinois is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It has the 5th largest Gross Domestic Product by state, is the 6th-most populous U.S. state and 25th-largest state in terms of land area. Illinois is often noted as a microcosm of the entire United States. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in northern and central Illinois, and natural resources such as coal, timber, and petroleum in the south, Illinois has a diverse economic base, and is a major transportation hub. Chicagoland, Chicago's metropolitan area, contains over 65% of the state's population. The Port of Chicago connects the state to other global ports around the world from the Great Lakes, via the Saint Lawrence Seaway, to the Atlantic Ocean; as well as the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River, via the Illinois Waterway on the Illinois River. The Mississippi River, the Ohio River, and the Wabash River form parts of the boundaries of Illinois. For decades, Chicago's O'Hare International Airport has been ranked as one of the world's busiest airports. Illinois has long had a reputation as a bellwether both in social and cultural terms and, through the 1980s, in politics.
The Dennis Otte Round Barn was built in 1930 by Herman Altenbern for Carl Richards near the community of Eleroy in Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. Richards' father had a round barn previously erected.[2]
Eleroy is an unincorporated community in Stephenson County, Illinois. The population was 85 at the 2000 census.
Stephenson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 United States Census, it had a population of 47,711. Its county seat is Freeport.
The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country composed of 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the largest city by population is New York City. Forty-eight states and the capital's federal district are contiguous in North America between Canada and Mexico. The State of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east and across the Bering Strait from Russia to the west. The State of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U.S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, stretching across nine official time zones. The extremely diverse geography, climate, and wildlife of the United States make it one of the world's 17 megadiverse countries.
Architecture
The Dennis Otte Round Barn is 54 feet (16.5 m) in diameter and stands upon a poured concrete foundation. The barn's main entrance is found in its east quadrant, where it faces due east. The door opens into a central crib which bisects the building. Animal stalls are arranged on either side of the crib in a semi circular pattern, they are divided with hewn and sawed posts which support a concentricloft plate with a radius of about 27 feet (8.2 m). The single hip roof is supported by a 2 by 6inch (5.1 by 15.2cm) beam nailed to each rafter four feet (1.2 m) above, and four feet (1.2 m) below on the opposite side, the roof hip. This is similar to the nearby Gerald Harbach Round Barn. The wooden shingled roof is capped by a short, squat cupola.[2] The loft plate, the flooring and the loft piers were all constructed from previously used materials.[2]
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid for the diameter of a sphere.
Concrete, usually Portland cement concrete, is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement that hardens over time—most frequently a lime-based cement binder, such as Portland cement, but sometimes with other hydraulic cements, such as a calcium aluminate cement. It is distinguished from other, non-cementitious types of concrete all binding some form of aggregate together, including asphalt concrete with a bitumen binder, which is frequently used for road surfaces, and polymer concretes that use polymers as a binder.
A loft can be an upper storey or attic in a building, directly under the roof or just a storage space under the roof usually accessed by a ladder. A loft apartment refers to large adaptable open space, often converted for residential use from some other use, often light industrial. Adding to the confusion, some converted lofts include upper open loft areas. Within certain upper loft areas exist even further lofts, which may contain loft areas of their own, and so forth.
Significance
The Otte Round Barn's main entrance faces due east.
The Dennis Otte Round Barn is one of 31 round barns that were constructed in a four county area, the Stephenson County area, that includes Winnebago County, Stephenson County and Rock and Green Counties in Wisconsin.[3] Twenty one of those barns, including the Otte Round Barn are within Stephenson County.[3]
Winnebago County is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 295,266, making it the seventh most populous county in Illinois behind Cook County and its five surrounding collar counties. Its county seat is Rockford.
Rock County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2010 census, the population was 160,331. Its county seat is Janesville.
Green County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2010 census, the population was 36,842. Its county seat is Monroe. Green County is included in the Madison WI Metropolitan Statistical Area.
While the design of the Otte Round Barn is consistent with the designs found during the second phase of Stephenson County, Illinois round barn construction it does have key differences which set it apart from other similar barns. Similarities are found in the single hip roof, the squat cupola and the special rafter bracing technique. The use of salvaged materials reflects the Depression era economy during which the Otte Round Barn was constructed.[2] These characteristic reflect the last design variation found in Stephenson County round barns.[2] The Otte Round Barn was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on February 23, 1984 as part of a Multiple Property Submission.[1][3]
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.
The Charles Fehr Round Barn is a round barn in the U.S. state of Illinois near the Stephenson County village of Orangeville. The barn was built in 1912 by the team of Jeremiah Shaffer and the Haas Brothers about one half mile from the Illinois–Wisconsin state border. The building is the first round barn in the Stephenson County area, home to 31 round barns, with a hip roof. The building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The Gerald Harbach Round Barn is a round barn near Eleroy, an unincorporated community in Stephenson County, Illinois, United States. The builder and designer of the building are unknown but it is very similar to round barns designed by the team of Jeremiah Shaffer and the Hass Brothers. It was probably built around the same time as the James Bruce Round Barn, erected in 1914, in Freeport. The Harbach Round Barn was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
The James Bruce Round Barn is a round barn located near the Stephenson County, Illinois city of Freeport, United States. The barn was constructed in 1914 by the team of Jeremiah Shaffer and the Haas Brothers, who were responsible for at least a dozen round barns in the area. The barn features a single hip roof design which was probably influenced by the Agricultural Experiment Stations at the University of Illinois and the University of Wisconsin–Madison. The Bruce Round Barn was the last known round barn designed by the Shaffer–Haas team. The building was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places as part of a multiple property submission in 1984.
1 2 3 4 5 Sculle, Keith A. "Dennis Otte Round Barn," National Register of Historic Places Individual Property Form: Multiple Property Submission, October 1983, HAARGIS Database, Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
1 2 3 Sculle, Keith A. "Round Barns in Illinois Thematic Resources," (PDF) National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 9 January 1984, National Register Information System, National Park Service. Retrieved 5 October 2007.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Related Research Articles
The Lewis Round Barn is located in Mendon, Illinois, in northwestern Adams County. It is one of 14 round barns recognized by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency. The barn was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 29, 2003.
The Thomas Ranck Round Barn is a round barn in Waterloo Township near the Fayette-Wayne County, Indiana county line. It is one of many round barns built in Indiana during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Of the round barns built in eastern Indiana during this period the Ranck Round Barn stands out as one of the most elaborately designed structures. The Thomas Ranck Round Barn was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in January 1983.
Round Barns in Illinois Thematic Resources is the title of a Multiple Property Submission to the National Register of Historic Places in the U.S. state of Illinois. The submission consists of 18 Illinois round barns located throughout the state. The list had major additions in 1982 and 1984. In 1983, 1992 and 2003 one property was added to the submission and in 1994 a historic district at the University of Illinois, including three round barns, was added to the submission and the National Register of Historic Places. The highest concentration of round barns on the submission occurs in Stephenson County. Five Stephenson County round barns were added to the National Register on February 23, 1984.
The Ryan Round Barn is a historic round barn located about six miles north of the city of Kewanee, Illinois in Johnson-Sauk Trail State Park.
The Virginia Tillery Round Barn is a round barn located on County Route 738 west of White Hall in Greene County, Illinois. The barn was built in the fall of 1912 for farmer Harry C. Price. With a 36 feet 6 inches (11.13 m) diameter, the barn is relatively small for an Illinois round barn; the median diameter of Illinois round barns was 60 feet (18 m). Its size suggests that it served as a general-purpose barn, not a dairy barn like the state's larger round barns. Brown tile blocks were used to build the barn, which is topped by a wood shingle roof with a cupola.
The Clarence Kleinkopf Round Barn is a round barn in McDonough County, Illinois, United States. Carpenter Dick Carmack built the barn in 1915 for farmer George Welch. The wooden barn has a diameter of 56 feet (17 m) and a shingled hip roof. The barn's entrances are on the west, south, and northwest sides. A haymow encircles three-quarters of the barn at the roof's base, and a ventilator sits at the roof's peak.
Ron George Round Barn is a round barn northeast of the U.S. village of Romeoville, Illinois. It was originally constructed for Frank Eaton c. 1912–13 in Bolingbrook, Illinois.
The Robert Weber Round Barn is a round barn located east of Durand, Illinois, United States along Illinois Route 75 in Harrison Township. The Weber barn was constructed in 1917 and features a roof designed and built by the Haas Brothers, who worked on other area round barns. The barn is 55 feet (17 m) in diameter and features a 24-foot (7.3 m) diameter central silo. The design of the Weber Round Barn stands out from other area round barns in its vitrified tile walls, a development used in later period American round barns. The Robert Weber Round Barn was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1984.
Young Round Barn is a historic round barn at Greene in Chenango County, New York built in 1914.
The Stone Manor is a historic Italianate residence in Homer Glen, Illinois.
The Round Barn, Bruce Township Section 3 is located in Bruce Township, Benton County, Iowa, United States. It was built in 1910 for use as a cattle barn. The building is a true round barn that measures 60 feet (18 m) in diameter. The barn is constructed of clay tile and features a conical roof. The structure does not have a cupola, but there is a silo that rises through the center. There is also a round machine shed on the same property. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1986.
The Erza McKenzie Round Barn is a historic building located near Hazleton in rural Buchanan County, Iowa, United States. It was built in 1922 by Erza McKenzie for a dairy barn. The building is a true round barn that measures 70 feet (21 m) in diameter. The barn is constructed of clay tile and features small cupolas on the west, southwest and south sides of the structure. The building features a two-pitch roof and a central silo. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1986.
The Chris Jensen Round Barn was a historic round barn located at 11723 West Galena Road near Lena, Illinois. The barn was 60 feet (18 m) in diameter and featured a conical roof with a cupola. The barn's livestock stalls were arranged in parallel rows; this configuration was highly unusual among round barns, which typically featured wedge-shaped stalls arranged along the outer circle of the barn.
The John and Katharine Tunkun Podjun Farm is a farm located at 9581 East 1 Mile Road in Ellsworth, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.
The David Hanaford Farmstead is a historic farm in Monticello Township, Minnesota, United States. It was first settled in 1855 and features a farmhouse built in 1870 and a barn from around the same time. The farmstead was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 for having local significance in the themes of agriculture and exploration/settlement. It was nominated for being "an excellent example of an early Wright County farmstead developed by a pioneer family from New England."
A Gothic-arched roof barn or Gothic-arch barn or Gothic barn or rainbow arch is a barn whose profile is in the ogival shape of a Gothic arch. These became economically feasible when arch members could be formed by a lamination process. The distinctive roofline features a center peak as in a gable roof, but with symmetrical curved rafters instead of straight ones. The roof could extend to the ground making the roof and walls a complete arch, or be built as an arched roof on top of traditionally framed walls.
