STORY BY STEPHEN PIERCE • PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN PATERSON
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’ m standing in a high-ceilinged, reconstructed timber barn in Middletown Springs, VT with owners Luke and Sarah Larson, staring up at its massive ceiling beams, many of which were hewed from trees that first grew in the early 1600s, nearly two hundred years before our country became a nation.
The darkened cuts made by axes swung by early American farmers are still visible, and if I let my imagination wander, the voices of those who once worked in the barn’ s former life, even centuries ago, might still be heard.
“ This is the old Reuben Waite barn,” explains Luke, owner of Green Mountain Timber Frames, the 43-year-old company specializing in locating, restoring, and re-erecting historic, hand-hewn timber frames and old barns, transforming them into custom homes, studios, or additions.
Stunning examples of their meticulous work can be seen throughout Vermont and surrounding states, and even as far south as Virginia, where the company re-erected an old timber frame as a small chapel. According to the owners,“ Luke completely understood our vision. He drew on his own past experience to add the details and finishing touches to an early 1800’ s granary and transformed it into a tiny country chapel, bell tower and all.”
who had grown up on the Waite farm in Galway, NY, where the barn had stood for generations. The family did not want to see the barn collapse and disappear, so they sold it to the Larsons, who became, in a sense, the next stewards in its long history.
Studying the timbers themselves is also essential to what the Larsons do: the barn’ s exact age, the specific hew marks still visible, and the style of joinery utilized. Luke explained that dendrochronology- – the process of taking a core sample from either a living tree or hewed beam to determine its age— has determined that the Reuben Waite barn dates back to 1796 – 97. He also noted that these old beams reveal much more than age, stating,“ This is why we often call trees‘ the scribes of nature.’”
“ It’ s incredible,” Sarah interjected.“ When we visit structures, along with the farmers and families who have been working that land— they step into these barns with us and immediately start telling stories. But if you look closely, the structures themselves tell stories as well, and we try to honor that history and pass it on to a new owner.”
In fact, the Reuben Waite barn itself has already become a kind
The company’ s website abounds with similar testimonials, praising Luke and his team not only for the unique beauty of the finished product, but also for their knowledge, attention to detail, and reverence for the workmanship of the original builders.
The Reuben Waite Barn Showcase
The Reuben Waite barn, re-erected on the Larson’ s property in 2022, is both a workshop and showcase for potential clients, but a quick glance around its spacious interior reveals that it serves as much more. Early American-style brooms hang from a wall; antique, handmade tools— including a broad axe that looks as if it were used in the War of the Roses— lay scattered about; an original cast-iron Glenwood stove sits in one corner; and in the barn’ s center sits a long teakwood table for meetings and community classes.
Clearly, the Larsons’ work involves more than saving old, rotting barns; they are also working to preserve part of Vermont’ s past. The Reuben Waite barn is a perfect example.
As they always do when salvaging an old barn, Luke and his wife, Sarah, researched local records offices and talked to people in the barn’ s original hometown. According to Luke,“ We discovered that Waite himself came up from the Connecticut Valley, but we’ ve traced his original roots back to Scotland.” Waite, they learned, was not only a farmer, but also a cooper and a pastor.“ He started three different churches, and at some point, erected this barn.”
Following the genealogy of the barn led the Larsons to descendants of Waite himself, including a 105-year-old woman named Eva,
Luke displays one of his many original timber shaping tools
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