Historic Significance
Architectural description:
This is a 1 ½ - story eave-entry barn which appears to be four-bay. The ridge line of the barn runs east-west parallel to Country Club Road but perpendicular to this portion of Oenoke Ridge. The north eave-side of the barn faces Country Club Road while the south eave-side is the main façade with the main entrance in the second bay from the west through a pair of double-height exterior-hung hooded X-braced sliding wagon doors. Three closely spaced six-over-six double-hung sash windows can be seen towards the immediate east of the main entrance. The façade also has two six-pane windows just below the eave-level, one each towards either edge. A margin of mortared field stone masonry foundation can be seen along the grade level which wraps the barn around its west gable gable-end. The first floor level of the west gable-end of the barn is blank with a distinct dropped girt siding divide line separating the gable attic. The gable attic is lined by cornice board and has two six-pane windows at the center. The north eave-side of the barn facing Country Club Road also has an entrance in the second bay from the west through a pair of double-height exterior-hung hooded X-braced sliding wagon doors. Two eight-pane windows can be seen towards the east of the double-height entrance while two six-pane windows can be seen just below the eave-level, one each towards either side. The gable-roof of the barn has a louvered cupola with an animal wind-vane at the center.
The wooden frame of the barn is supported on mortared field stone masonry foundation. The barn has asphalt shingles roofing and red painted vertical siding walls with white trim.
Historical significance:
The oldest barns still found in the state are called the "English Barn,” “side-entry barn,” “eave entry,” or a 30 x 40. They are simple buildings with rectangular plan, pitched gable roof, and a door or doors located on one or both of the eave sides of the building based on the grain warehouses of the English colonists' homeland. The name “30 by 40” originates from its size (in feet), which was large enough for 1 family and could service about 100 acres. The multi-purpose use of the English barn is reflected by the building's construction in three distinct bays - one for each use. The middle bay was used for threshing, which is separating the seed from the stalk in wheat and oat by beating the stalks with a flail. The flanking bays would be for animals and hay storage.
Field Notes
Like so many barns in New Canaan, this one is a remnant of the towns agricultural past. While it has been thoroughly reworked, it is a physical reminder in the landscape that reinforces its character. This is one of two barns that survive from a group of four. An ell off of this building once created a protected work yard; that feeling is now lost. It now feels somewhat isolated in the landscape.[JS]