The Pennsylvania Barn

Reading the second edition of The Pennsylvania Barn is like sitting at the kitchen table with an old friend.

The Pennsylvania Barn belongs on the shelf of all students of the vernacular landscape. It is hard to imagine that this monumental work will ever be displaced by a new interpretation.

A comprehensive study that will be of interest to the general reader as well as scholars and students of the vernacular landscape... The book is profusely illustrated with good photographs, diagrams, and line drawings.

With the perspective of a master builder and farmer and the eye of an artist, Ensminger guides the reader through the historical development of Pennsylvania barns from their origin in medieval Europe to their present-day uses... All may be identified by studying the photographs generously scattered throughout the text.

With this volume, Ensminger has drawn our attention to one of the most distinctive buildings in the American landscape, one which offers lessons not only pertinent to American agriculture and ethnic history, but one whose study reveals much about settlement processes. Every scholar concerned with material culture on whatever level will want to read and treasure this book.