The Michigan Barn Preservation Network (MBPN) has designated the Leelanau County Poor Farm Barn as a Barn of the Year. A dedication event will be held outside the barn on Thursday, May 20, at 4 pm. A plaque and sign will be presented to Leelanau County Historic Preservation Society president Steve Stier. The public is invited to attend.
The Glen Lake Community Library will present a free documentary film, The Barn Raisers, on Friday, November 17 at 7 p.m., in the Empire Township Hall. The film explores Midwest barns through the lens of architecture, building methods, barn styles, and materials: what they tell us about the people who built them, the life they lived, and the role these “country cathedrals” played in the settling and building of our country.
The “poor farm barn” is the last remnant of what was once a haven for Leelanau County’s indigent residents who worked there raising crops, chickens and cattle in return for a place to live.