How many barns are there in Vermont?  What kind of condition are they in?  Are we losing significant numbers each year?   What can be done to preserve these icons of our history and landscape?  The goal of the Vermont Barn Census is to carry out, for the first time, a state-wide census of Vermont’s barns that will lay the foundation for further efforts to preserve them.

Taking part in the Vermont Barn Census couldn’t be easier! The Census is designed to be carried out by individuals or by groups. Volunteers are welcome to survey one barn or many. No prior experience in agriculture, construction, engineering, or history is required! This website is designed to give you the background information and tools that you need. Over the course of the Barn Census Weekends, volunteers will explore their communities to locate barns and take a photo and some notes about barn features, history, use and current condition, and then submit the data over the web.

So far, volunteers for the Vermont Barn Census have recorded information on barns from Southern Vermont to the Northeast Kingdom. We have heard from individuals all over the state and had some great conversations on the past and future of Vermont's agricultural heritage. The Barn Census is also a great way to get to know your community better; you'd be amazed what you can find when you explore the back roads of your town and talk with neighbors.

Although the Vermont Barn Census will occur mainly this fall between October 3 and 12, 2009, volunteers are welcome to participate at whatever time works best. Students from elementary to high school are encouraged to participate. 

We hope that the Barn Census will be an important first step in the preservation of these threatened resources. While inclusion in a survey does not guarantee the preservation of a structure or site, it raises awareness of the value of a structure and the importance of its continued maintenance and use.

A Project of the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, University of Vermont Historic Preservation Program,
and Historic Windsor’s Preservation Education Institute, Save Vermont Barns,
Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, and Preservation Trust of Vermont

This project is funded by a Preserve America Grant through the National Park Service to the State of Vermont Division for Historic Preservation.