Beecher H. Duncan Farm facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Beecher H. Duncan Farm
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 Location in Maine
Location in the United States
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| Location | 26 Shorey Rd., Westfield, Maine |
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| Area | 129 acres (52 ha) |
| Built | 1910 |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne, Gambrel-roof barn |
| NRHP reference No. | 09000011 |
| Added to NRHP | February 11, 2009 |
The Beecher H. Duncan Farm, also known as Brookvale Farm, is a special old farm property located at 26 Shorey Road in Westfield, Maine. This farm was built between 1910 and 1912. It includes a house, a small cottage, a big barn, and a modern garage. The farm is a great example of a family farm from a time when Aroostook County was famous for growing lots of potatoes.
Because of its history and how well it has been kept, the Beecher H. Duncan Farm was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. This means it's an important place that should be protected.
Contents
Exploring the Duncan Farm Property
The Duncan Farm covers about 129 acres (52 ha) of land. It is located in the northern part of Westfield, right next to the town of Presque Isle. The main farm buildings are on the east side of Shorey Road, which actually runs through the property.
The Farmhouse and Barn
The main house is a two-story building made of wood. It has a style called Queen Anne, which was popular for homes around that time. This style often includes interesting roof shapes and porches. The house was built in 1912 by Henry Duncan.
South of the house, you'll find a very large barn. Henry Duncan built this barn in 1910. It has a special roof shape called a gambrel roof, which looks like a barn roof with two slopes on each side. This design helped create more space inside for storing hay. The front of the barn has a huge sliding door and a smaller door for people to walk through.
The Farm's Early Days
Henry Duncan bought the main part of this farm in 1904. At that time, there was already a potato storage building and a small barn on the land, which showed that farming was already happening there. Henry needed a bigger barn to store hay and food for his workhorses. So, he built the large gambrel-roofed barn in 1910.
The Duncan family usually planted about 50 acres (20 ha) of potatoes each year. They also grew about 50 acres of hay and oats. The rest of the land was left to rest. They also kept cows and chickens for their own family's use. The chickens were kept in a shed attached to the barn, but that shed is no longer there.
Changes Over Time
The type of large barn that Henry Duncan built became less common as farming changed. When machines like tractors became popular, farmers didn't need as much space to store hay and feed for horses.
After Henry Duncan passed away in 1915, his son, Beecher Duncan, took over the farm. In 1944, Beecher bought a tractor that ran on gasoline. After getting the tractor, he sold his workhorses and removed the stalls where they used to live inside the barn. This shows how farming methods changed over the years, moving from animal power to machine power.
