No Corners #9192

The Story

The Round Barn near Centre Hall is the most photographed and well-known barn in Pennsylvania other than the famous Star Barn which now sits outside Elizabethtown. Here in winter snow on a cold but sunny day, it is also one of the more scenic rural views in that area too.

It’s actually a bank barn and hay wagons could access the upper level from a ramp behind. As a farming innovation, it was a more efficient way to store hay and grain on the upper floor and feed cows on the lower level, thereby saving the farmer some labor. Although the round barn design was used more frequently in the midwest and first proven there, the innovation never really caught on in Pennsylvania or anywhere else. Even though the design was shown to be more efficient in both daily farm labor and use of construction materials, sometimes traditional ways will still win out. Another possibility is it was harder to build and therefore more expensive in the long run.

Interestingly, the center of the barn is an enclosed silo that has grain bins arranged around it. Both the silo and animal feeding bins are filled from above. That set up makes it easier to distribute hay and grain to the cows that were on a radial at ground level.

This barn was built in 1910 of local white pine on a limestone foundation by a local schoolteacher who had retired later in life to farm dairy. The Round Barn is well maintained by the current owners and sits along one of the main roads through the area between Boalsburg and Centre Hall, just outside State College in the middle of Pennsylvania. It’s well known because of the visibility and picturesque setting and a lot of people drive by it daily. It has many admirers, and gawkers and photographers often make a scenic stop here to view it.

Another scenic Pennsylvania barn in winter snow with mountains behind is Red Roof Ridge #14376. To see the famous Star Barn in the original location before restoration, have a look at Star Barn 2 #14897. After the very beautifully done restoration can be seen in New Star Barn 3 #14910.

Location: Centre Hall, Centre County, Pennsylvania. Picture and story © Andrew Dierks