Iowa barns disappearing on landscape
The history of Iowa barns and the restoration of old barns was presented Saturday at the Matt Cosgrove River’s Edge Discovery Center in Fort Dodge. More than a dozen people gathered to learn some “Barnology 101” as part of Webster County Conservation’s monthly “Coffee and Conversation” event. Deann Haden, presenter and Iowa Barn Foundation board member, said the barn population in Iowa has declined from more than 200,000 barns during peak rural population in the 1900s to fewer than 40,000 barns today. The Iowa Barn Foundation is a volunteer-led organization with the mission of preserving…