2010 Heritage Barn Conference
Marcus Whitman Hotel and Conference Center
May 6-7, 2010
Walla Walla, Washington

The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, in association with the National Barn Alliance, hosted the 2010 Heritage Barn Conference at the Marcus Whitman Hotel and Conference Center on May 6-7, 2010.  The conference program (PDF File) provides details and schedules.

The goal for our conference was to gather stakeholders with an interest in promoting the preservation of heritage barn sites in the Pacific Northwest, including Washington, Oregon, Idaho and beyond. We convened preservationists, planners, farm owners, historians, barn aficionados, and the community at large to focus on barn preservation and related topics. The first day featured a series of educational sessions, with an opening plenary and lunchtime keynote speaker, Jim Lindbergh. Mr. Lindbergh works in the Mountains/Plains Office of the National Trust for Historic Preservation as Director of Preservation Initiatives and is also the director of the Barn Again! program.

Following the opening plenary, which looked at the architectural legacy of barns in the Pacific Northwest region, the remaining sessions were broken into two tracks and included identification and survey of historic barns, rural heritage tourism, tools and strategies for rural preservation, adaptive re-use of barns, and policies focusing on agricultural and barn preservation.  Session presentations are available upon request.

Tracks and Sessions:
Track 1: Architecture & Building
Session 1: Historically Appropriate Barn Rehabilitation: Funding and Implementation
Session 2: Barns as Habitat: The Added Value of Owls, Bats and Other Wildlife
Session 3: Adaptive Re-use: The Re-Birth of Historic Barns

Track 2: Preservation & Planning
Session 1: Heritage Tourism & Rural Development
Session 2: Combining Barn Preservation & Ag-Land Retention: A How To Discussion
Session 3: Models for Local Barn Survey & Documentation

Day one concluded with an evening reception where the Washington Trust held a silent auction featuring work from local artist Todd Telander.  Auction proceeds benefited the Washington Trust's Valerie Sivinski Washington Preserves Fund.

Day two offered two field trips designed to engage conference participants in local history, barn construction, and hands on examples of adaptive use.

Tour 1 The Kibler Barn Legacy
Tour attendees experienced the legacy of the Kibler Family, pioneers in the Walla Walla Valley, through the agricultural structures they built. Using similar plans, four barns were constructed for members of the extended family to be utilized in the overall farming operations. A unique collection of related outbuildings were erected to supplement agricultural production at each site. Additional buildings include a hoghouse, grist mill, granary, smokehouse, and other structures that tell the story of agricultural production in the valley. Two of the Kibler Barns remain in family ownership. A third now serves as the Abeja Winery, providing an interesting case study for adaptive reuse. A fifth Kibler Barn constructed differently from the others was also included.

Tour 2 Anatomy of a Barn
From timber-frame to stick frame, octagonal, arched bow truss, or gambrel, barns demonstrate a wonderful variety of forms, shapes and styles. The tour focused on barn construction and participants had the opportunity to investigate hands-on how these magnificent structures remain standing, what goes wrong when they fall down, and everything in between! Site visits were made to barns in Washington and Oregon and included a rebuilt timber-frame barn and a stop at the Frazier Farmstead Museum to learn how a 1918 barn helps to interpret agricultural heritage.

For conference registrants interested in experiencing barns on two wheels, a bicycle tour map of historic barns was provided by Allegro Cyclery.

Conference Sponsors
The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation and the National Barn Alliance greatly appreciate support from our conference sponsors. Without their generous contributions, this conference would not have been possible.

Preservation Circle
Artifacts Consulting, Inc.
Banner Bank
Department of Archaeology & Historic Preservation
The National Society of The Colonial Dames of America in the State of Washington
National Trust for Historic Preservation

Patron
BOLA Architecture + Planning
Kenneth B. Wells Trust

Advocate
Tom & Kris Bassett
Clark Design Group, PLLC
The McGregor Company
Planning Association of Washington
Vern Studer Insurance Agency

Contributor
Associated Veterinary Medical Center
Blue Mountain Audubon Society