The Round Barn

 The village of Arcadia OK, along Historic Route 66, was home to a second interesting roadside attraction:  the Round Barn. (The other was POPs, featured in the last blog post.)

It was built by local farmer William Harrison Odor in 1898 using native bur oak boards soaked while green and forced into the curves needed for the walls and roof rafters. Local red Permian rock was used for the foundation. The barn housed hay, grain and livestock.

the black arrow shows Hwy. 66

The Arcadia Round Barn is 60 feet (18 meters) in diameter and 43 feet (13 meters) tall. The barn was built in a round shape because Odor thought tornados would go around the building rather than through. 

The volunteer in the first/lower level of the barn shared the round shape was also to keep evil spirits away. 

Three of Odors workers thought the loft would make a great dance floor and offered to pay the difference in price of replacing the planned rough plank flooring with smooth hardwood flooring, IF they could hold three dances.

The loft can still be rented today for dances, but no alcohol can be consumed in the barn.

In April of 1946, ownership of the barn passed to Frank and Katie Vrana. For the next 30 years, Vrana used the barn to store hay and as a work place. A large door cut into the north-east side of the barn weakened the structure and high winds from a storm caused the barn to lean. The barn was rapidly decaying and a target for arsonists and vandals when it was placed on the Historic Register of Historic Places in 1977.

basket weave design of the roof

Luke Robison, a retired builder and carpenter, became aware of the barn’s plight and formed The Arcadia Historical and Preservation Society with his wife Anna and Beverly White. On May 27, 1988 Frank Vrana's descendants donated the barn to the Society.

Robison had just begun to shore up the structure a few days before when, on June 29, 1988 at 12:09 pm, the decaying roof of the barn “just kind of sighed and fell in, like a soufflé,” according to one witness. The Society remained undeterred, determined to proceed with the restoration. Work began in 1989 and was officially dedicated April 1992.

There are numerous old pieces of farm equipment on site. Hubby remembers neighbors using a similar potato planter.

an out house

Yep. Everyone had one. (remember to click on the photo to get a larger view.) I wonder if it is used during the dances as there is no bathroom in the barn. 

We were led to believe we could purchase Round Barn Root Beer at the barn, but they only sold bottled water. That is why we had to go back to Pops (visit #3) and then found out they did not have any bottled Round Barn Root Beer in stock!