
Based on a tip from a friend, I drove through the rain toward Brookville yesterday on the 322 looking for an elusive old barn and the crew from DIY Network’s documentary series, ‘Barnwood Builders’. The show, which features a team of West Virginia builders that purchase old barns and log cabins in order to reuse the hand-hewn logs, was found filming in an 1885 barn in Emerickville that they purchased and plan to salvage. According to the production crew, today is their last day of filming but they’ll be back to take the structure down, log by log, in about two weeks.

After driving past the barn a couple times (there was no signage or truck identifying the show) and mustering up the courage, I pulled off to the side of the road and tiptoed through some mud and hopped a few puddles to venture in to say hello and ask for a picture. The production team was taking a break in filming and, although feeling awkward interrupting them, the builders seemed flattered to be recognized. After inviting them all out to Treasure Lake for some golf and time on the lake, I was told “maybe in two weeks” when they come back out to deconstruct the building. They were probably just being polite but keep your fingers crossed! And if you have’t seen the show, tune in to the DIY Network or Discovery Channel and check out this season’s ‘Barnwood Builders’ to learn more about the reclamation and restoration of pioneer-era structures in the United States.

Categories: Community