Historic Kansas Barns
Client: Kansas State Historical Society
In 2007, the Kansas State Historic Society hired Spencer to conduct a survey of historic barns in the state and to develop a historic context and Multiple Property Documentation Form to facilitate property-owner sponsored National Register nominations of historic Kansas barns.
With assistance and cooperation from the Kansas Barn Alliance and Kansas Electric Cooperative (KEC), Spencer surveyed 352 barns in 84 of the state’s 105 counties. A primary goal of the project was to encourage property owners to list their eligible agricultural buildings and barns on the National Register of Historic Places making them eligible to take advantage of existing financial incentives for the preservation and maintenance of historic properties.
The project culminated with nomination of individual barns on the National Register under the new MPS Historic Agriculture-Related Resources of Kansas including the Eliason Barn in Dickenson County, the Persons Farm in Riley County, the Shafer Barn in Sheridan County, the Teske Farmstead in Pottawatomie County, and the Thornburg farm in Ness County. Since completion of the state-wide project, Spencer has worked with several individual barn owners to list their barns on the National Register and pursue improvement projects using Kansas Historic Tax Credits.
