The Maasdam Barns opened for the 2013 season on May 11. Hours are 1-4pm Tuesdays and Thursdays, and 10am-4pm on Saturdays. In addition, tours are available by appointment.
Barns opened May 11, 2013. KTVO News presented a report of the season opening of the Maasdam Barns, including an interview with Jim Salts. View it here.
An article in the April 2013 Smithsonian Magazine lists Fairfield, IA, as number 7 of 20. Read the The 20 Best Small Towns to Visit in 2013 article online, where the Maasdam Barns are mentioned.
New exterior sign. A new sign was installed in front of the Museum, along Highway 1. The small "Open" sign can be flipped down to "Closed". Made possible in part by an Iowa Humanities grant.
Audio Tour now available. The Aug 29 edition of The Fairfield Ledger explains how a visitor can listen to the story of this farmstead while walking through the property. Click here to download or listen to the audio file.
Barns on KTVO-TV, May 1, 2012, See Kate Allt's report here.
Snowstorm in Feb 2012, by Ginny Hughes. See more.
Volunteer of the year, Dec 8, 2011. Details.
Open House, Oct 7 & 8, 2011. Photos.
Then & Now photo comparison page is now here.
Getting ready, Sept 24, 2011. Photos.
McCombs Lane, Sept 23, 2011. The story.
Welcome Center exhibits, Sept 7, 2011. See photos.
Volunteer work, July & August, 2011. See photos.
Volunteers, June 11, 2011
More volunteer work, and updates. See photos.
Volunteers, May 14, 2011
During this rainy Saturday the Show Barn gets cleaned up and the Welcome Center interior gets attention. See photos.
Update, April 24, 2011
Progress was made over the winter -- the driveway and parking lot, the Welcome Center sidewalk-ramp, and on the restrooms. See more photos.
Show Barn, January, 2011
Contractors installed a new cupola for the Show Barn, and replaced the roof shingles. Old photos show a cupola on the barn, but it was removed at some point, so a new one was built to match the photos. See more photos.
Restoration Work, Jan 5, 2011
From a story in the Fairfield Ledger -- Restoration work returns original look to historic barn.
After installing a replica of the original cupola on the milking barn at the historic Maasdam Barns, a crew from Schaus-Vorhies Contracting Inc., begins a project to replace the asphalt shingles with wooden ones so that the barn will look more like it originally did.
Work is progressing at the Maasdam Barns, but the historical site isn't ready to open for visitors just yet.
According to Larry Nash, chairman of the Maasdam Barns Historic Preservation Committee, a Schaus-Vorhies Contracting Inc. crew is currently working on the roof of the milking barn to restore it to its original state.
For the complete article, see the Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2011, printed edition of The Fairfield Ledger.
Or go to the Fairfield Ledger website, or click here.
Welcome Center, Nov 2010
More work needs to be completed inside -- a timetable has not been established. Some work will be handled by contractors, but much of the labor will continue to be performed by volunteers. Contact us if you would like to help.
A photo essay of the renovation progress on the Welcome Center itself is on-going -- see it at the Welcome Center page.
infrastructure work, Sept-Nov 2010
In September 2010 a contractor started construction on the infrastructure. The project includes driveways and a parking lot, a ramp and sidewalks for the Welcome Center, and the foundation for a new garage. Extra dirt from the work will be used to complete the filling-in of the old farm pond.
During the winter the dirt along the Welcome Center will be allowed to settle, before a sidewalk is constructed. This will allow stair-less entry onto the front porch and hence into the building through the front door. Photo essay here.
Information Sign, Sept 2010
A large sign was installed next to the barns. One side has a full-size photo of the World's Largest Horse and the other side tells you about the Maasdam Barns complex.
See photos of the sign and of the construction of the frame.
© 2009-2013 Maasdam Barns Preservation Committee
