Cow Castle #15352

The Story

A working Victorian Gothic Revival barn with fancy woodwork and large cupolas. It’s still in use every day with a modest herd of cows.

These large cupolas are for ventilation as much as to show off a wealthy man’s barn from back in the day. There is a high danger of fire from the spontaneous combustion of the large amounts of hay stored in barns. In fact, a barn fire can be out of control in seconds and they go up quickly. Therefore, summer ventilation is very important. In fact, the side of this barn is all continuous doors that can be swung open to add even more airflow.

If you look closely, lightning rods are installed along the roof peak…another fire prevention device. They look like little white balls being the white glass covers of the rods.

Location: Alexandria, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. Picture and story © Andrew Dierks