Why Are Barns Red?

By: Jonathan Dunkle

As the season moves from summer to fall, we’ll start to see the colors of Lancaster’s farms change from the lush green of fully-grown crops to the dried, brown remnants of the plowed fields once harvesting is complete. One color, though, will remain the same across all four seasons – the bright red that covers barns on many of our local farms.

Why are all these barns red? If we turn to the internet, we find some answers, most of which seem to be repeated from a single uncited source (that never happens online).

Some note that back in the early days, well before one could visit the local general store and pick up a can of paint, farmers found that coating their barns with linseed or flaxseed oil would help protect the wood from the elements. By adding iron oxide, easily attainable from rusted metal, the homemade varnish would also prevent the growth of fungus and moss. The addition of the rust, often made lighter in color through the addition of milk that helped the oil spread across the wood, gave the red hue that has become so common.

Others suggest that farmers used red paint to keep animals warm during the winter, as the red exterior helped to absorb the sun’s heat and trap it inside.

Vanity, while less practical, is yet another suggested motive. Brick masonry became popular in the United States in the middle of the 19th century as the population grew and spread across the country. Brick had the advantage over wood buildings in that it was sturdier and fireproof. It was also more costly. Some experts believe that farmers painted barns red to mimic the wealthier brick, making their property appear more well-to-do.

Frugality played a part in the continued usage of red barns into the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Industrial Revolution spawned many advancements, including prepared paints. A look at turn-of-the-century Sears and Roebuck catalogs shows that white was the only color paint cheaper than red. Blues, which used expensive minerals or the indigo plant for coloring, cost far more for the same quantity of paint. The relatively inexpensive cost of red and white paint also provides the answer to a similarly asked question – “Why were early schoolhouses either red or white?”

Ultimately, we don’t really know why barns were initially painted red, and until someone builds a time-traveling DeLorean, we will likely never know. My favorite theory, however, originates from a small newspaper published in 1930s Wisconsin. The Tri-Town News (Hales Corners, Franklin, and Muskego) said, “The farm is a place of beauty, and the predominating color is green. To provide a fitting contrast with this green, a nice, big red barn is needed. After your eyes sweep across the verdant fields and meadows, they get tired of too much green. The red barn gives them a pleasant change and a welcome rest…It brings the farm into glorious bloom. It is the symbol of the farm’s productivity.”

Regardless of the barns, our farms are an essential part of our history in Lancaster. We are lucky to have a rich agricultural heritage, and at LFT, we hope to see that legacy carry on for generations to come. Preserving those bright, red barns and all of the land around them is one of the ways we work to better our community, protect our heritage, and save the Lancaster we know and love. To learn more about our mission and ways you can get involved, click here! Next time you see a beautiful red barn, think of us at Lancaster Farmland Trust.