Still at the top of the ridge, we take a path
through ground pine and visit the old barn
that seems to be deteriorating more each time we see it. Now it is too unsafe to go inside and view the names, initials and dates that for decades visitors have carved into the logs of the pen in the middle. It is intriguing to read the scratchings and wonder about them -- who wrote them, where were they from, what are they doing today? The barn was built in the 1940's and for many years served the owners well when the ridge was used for farming tobacco and for pasturing cows. It is hard to believe that there was once a garden there by the barn, and the story goes that the woman of the household hiked up that ridge everyday to hoe and weed it. This barn goes with the old house in my posting of November 19. It is sad to see what was once a strong, useful structure, neglected and falling down to its knees.
You are lucky to know the barn`s history.I always wonder why things were let go,didn`t anyone try to help keep the barn up,& why not?If I had carved my name there,I would be going back to check it,but perhaps they are only spirits now,phylliso
ReplyDeleteI love hearing the old history, Aleta. I'll have to look back at your Nov. 19th post to see the old house. When you bought the property--had it been in the hands of a family who had had it for many years??? I wish I could find my grandparents and great grandparents property in Lee County...
ReplyDeleteHave a great day.
Hugs,
Betsy
What a beautiful piece of history. The forest seems to be reclaiming the area.
ReplyDeleteThe cabin were my father was born has disappeared into the red Georgia dirt. I wish we had some pictures.
When we bought the property, it had been owned by another "outsider" for 5 years. Prior to that a different outsider had owned the property and lived in an UNDERGROUND house. Wish we could see that, but it is long gone, buried below where my rock garden is now. The original LOCAL property owners' daughter still lives down the road and talks of the times she had to walk up here to the "holler" to fetch the cows from the pasture. The deeds for the land around here are interesting. The boundaries are marked by, for example: "from the rock at the elm tree on Johnson's property south to the poplar tree at the western end of Kramer's property" (just an example; not real names), and so the adjoining properties have changed hands many times over and of course the elm trees and poplar trees have long since died, so you can't be sure of which line they are talking about, and you can't follow fence lines. They go all over the place. Anyway, amazingly, we do know where our boundaries are but only because Doug put a lot of effort into figuring it all out!
ReplyDeletePhyllis - I too wonder why people let things go. One of the current owners of the house (we call it the Virginia house) that goes with the barn is trying to keep the house standing. He lives in Virginia and comes up once in awhile but the house will soon look like the barn if something drastic isn't done. We'd like to buy that property but they won't sell it -- at least not yet!
ReplyDeleteI love old barns and hearing the history behind them!
ReplyDelete