By Cynthia Van Ness, © 2000-2008

Barn Plans and Outbuildings: Two Hundred and Fifty-Seven Illustrations
New York : Orange Judd and Co., 1893
From the preface: "Every professional builder, and every person, be he farmer or otherwise, can, in this book, secure a wealth of designs and plans, for a comparatively trifling sum." Includes illustrations and plans for barns for a variety of agricultural uses. Even includes a chapter on bird houses. Architectural pattern books such as this began to appear after the Civil War, enabling Americans of modest means to build a variety of structures without the expense of hiring a private architect.

Berg, Donald J.
American Country Building Design: Rediscovered Plans for 19th-Century Farmhouses, Cottages, Landscapes, Barns, Carriage Houses & Outbuildings
Sterling Publications, c1997
Paperback, $14.95, ISBN 0806996749
Not seen by this author

Fink, Daniel
Barns of the Genesee Country, 1790-1915
Geneseo, NY : James Brunner, c1986
Hardcover, $38.95, may still be available from the publisher: 716-243-3563
An in-depth 525-page study of upstate NY's diverse barns in their social, economic, historical, and agricultural contexts, utilizing period illustrations, diagrams, maps, excerpts from farmers' diaries, and color and black and white photographs

Franklin, Wayne
A Rural Carpenter's World: The Craft in a Nineteenth-Century Township
Iowa City, IA : University of Iowa Press, c1990
$37.95, ISBN 0-87745-277-6
From Book News, Inc. , October 1, 1990:
"Drawing on the 1869 diary of New York farmer and carpenter James C. Holmes, Franklin (English and American studies, U. of Iowa) reconstructs Holmes' networks and grounds his craft within the context of 19th century culture, society, and economics. He also provides a group biography of some 60 carpenters who practiced in the area until 1900." Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

Graham, Frank D.
Audel's Carpenters and Builders Guide #2
New York : Theo. Audel & Co., 1923, 1939
Pages 813-820 give detailed instructions for barn framing

Klamkin, Charles
Barns: Their History, Preservation, and Restoration
New York: Hawthorn Books, c1973
Out of print; used copies go for about $16.
Saving barns, how old barns were built, transition from general to specialized barns, finding a barn to remodel, and how three owners renovated their barns, etc. Several B/W photos throughout.

Nash, George
Renovating Old Houses
Newtown, Ct : Taunton Press, c1992
Paperback, $19.95, ISBN 1-56158-128-3
See the Foundations chapter for detailed and well-illustrated techniques for shoring

Radford, William; Loveless, David and Loveless, Joan
Practical Plans for Barns, Carriage Houses, Stables & Other Country Buildings
Stockbridge: Berkshire Traveller Press, 1978
Out of print.
Contains the text of the 1908 original, with modern enhancements

Rawson, Richard
The Old House Book of Barn Plans
New York: Sterling Publishing Co., 1990
Out of print. ISBN 0-8069-7417-6
A wonderful collection of plans and drawings of barns. Covers many styles of barn and displays them inside and out with hundreds of photos, drawings, site palns, and floor plans along with a lively text that explains a variety of styles and innovations.

Szarkowski, John
Mr. Bristol's Barn: With Excerpts from Mr. Blinn's Diary
New York : Harry N. Abrams, Inc., c1997
Paperback, $16.95, ISBN 0-8109-4286-0
Offering a vivid sense of rural life in the Civil War era, Mr. Bristol's Barn pairs eloquent photographs of a 19th-century barn owned by Abel Bristol with moving selections from the diary of Bristol's neighbor and contemporary, Philo Blinn. 33 duotone photos.

Sources for out-of-print books:

• Your local used/rare/out-of-print book dealer
• http://www.bibliofind.com
• http://www.alibris.com
• http://www.bookfinder.com