Many Barns, Two Minds

From Dave Brigham:

What a lovely pastoral scene, no?

Located in my hometown of Simsbury, Conn., these barns were once used to dry tobacco leaves. Simsbury was part of what was called "Tobacco Valley," a fertile area stretching from Springfield, Mass., south along the Connecticut River and its tributaries to Hartford, Connecticut (I wrote a lot of these same words five years ago in "Tobacco Road"). Beginning in 1640, farmers imported seeds from Virginia, according to ConnecticutHistory.org, and for a long time after, tobacco farming was the largest industry in the Valley.

By the time I was growing up, from the late 1960s through the '70s, the industry had shrunk but was still a vital and visible part of the local economy. A decrease in cigar smoking, combined with the availability of cheaper, mass-produced cigar wrappers, led to the demise of the tobacco farms. In the 1930's, total acreage in the Valley dedicated to growing tobacco stood at 30,000 acres, according to ConnecticutHistory.org. By 2006, the land for farming had dwindled to less than 2,000 acres.

I was surprised, then, that a few minutes after I shot those barns, a tractor hauling a trailer laden with tobacco leaves drove by me. I didn't realize that Simsbury was still active in the shade-tobacco business. I posted that photo on a Simsbury Facebook group, and learned that the leaves are grown in nearby East Granby or Bloomfield, and then hung in some of Simsbury's barns. A short distance from where I saw the tractor, is a former tobacco field with an array of solar panels.

I'm of two minds about these barns. As photography subjects, I find them irresistible. They evoke memories of the days before Simsbury became a bedroom community for Hartford's insurance industry. The white barns set off nicely against the surrounding green fields. The patina gives a nice sense of the history here, and the slight overgrowth tells me that someone is still taking care of these places.

But the fact is, these barns represent an industry that is bad for people's health, plain and simple.

I also spent time photographing barns along the main drag through Simsbury, Hopmeadow Street (aka Route 10). The barns below are located on land owned by Culbro, LLC, which has owned tobacco farms in the area for decades. The property below abuts the International Skating Center of Connecticut, where ice skaters from around the globe have trained over the past 25 years.

For more about Tobacco Valley barns, see:

December 17, 2020, "A Towering Discovery in Tobacco Country."

February 27, 2020, "Shoot It If You Got It."

September 20, 2017, "One-Stop Barnstorming Tour."

For more about Simsbury, see:

February 4, 2016, "Stealing Back Into the Past of My Hometown."

December 29, 2012, "Exploring Back Home."

February 7, 2013, "President Little, Part II: From Myth to Man."

September 20, 2011, "In Search of President Little."

A Towering Discovery in Tobacco Country

From Mr. Nutmeg State:

For years I've passed this old water tower on the way to and from my mother's house in Windsor, Conn., the top just visible above the tree line as I zoomed along Route 291. I planned to check it out in November, but was having car trouble and didn't want to risk stopping for a look and finding out my car wouldn't start again. But earlier this month, the stars aligned and I made the side trip on my way back to Massachusetts, and boy was I glad I did.

I expected to find the tower in the middle of a field, where I would take a nice shot under a beautiful sky, and then mosey on back to the highway. What I discovered, instead, was that this striking rural spire sits next to a beautiful shingled building located in a historic district that I instantly fell in love with.

The Windsor Farms Historic District "is a 2-1/2 square mile area on the east bank of the Connecticut River which comprises the historical center of South Windsor," according to this web site. "Main Street, the principal street in the ...[d]istrict, runs in a generally northeasterly direction, bisecting open fields under cultivation by the tobacco farmers of this rural village for several centuries."

This property sits on the corner of Main and North King streets, a few steps from a small farm selling pasture-raised beef, lamb and pork. Heading north along Main Street in this historic district, there are several beautiful old homes and other small farms, some of which still grow tobacco. South Windsor is located in the Connecticut River Valley, long known for its tobacco crop.

For more about this tobacco-growing region, check out these posts: February 27, 2020, "Shoot It If You Got It"; September 20, 2017, "One-Stop Barnstorming Tour"; and July 19, 2016, "Tobacco Road".

As you might imagine, tobacco farming in the valley has decreased signficantly in recent decades. "In the 1930s, Connecticut had 30,000 acres of farmland dedicated to tobacco production; by 2006 this acreage had dwindled to less than 2,000 acres," per this Connecticut History article. "Much of the former tobacco farmland is now used to grow nursery stock or has been developed into residential communities and shopping centers."

So it's cool to see some small farms still in operation in South Windsor. As I've noted in the previous articles linked above, I grew up in Simsbury, Conn., which was also a tobacco-growing town, so I feel a connection to this shrinking industry. When I was young, there were still a few old barns located at the fringes of my neighborhood. Those are long gone, but there are still some scattered througout my quiet hometown.

I'm amazed at how well preserved this building is. I'm not sure its former use: perhaps a dormitory for migrant workers, as one friend suggested when I posted a photo on Facebook. More likely, though, is a warehouse. That's what the article about the historic district that I linked to above suggests, without mentioning this building specifically.

Doesn't matter to me what this building was used for; I'm just happy it's still standing in such great shape.

Graffiti Week, Part II

Here's the second post in our Graffiti Series, focusing on barns. Whether you consider them artists or vandals, there's no denying taggers' creativity, boldness and affinity for a method of communication that few outside their domain understand. We hope you enjoy this series, or are at least provoked by it. If you missed the first installment, check out May 21, 2012, "Graffiti Week, Part I." -- Ed.

(Photo by Mick Melvin: Tobacco barn, Suffield, CT)

(Photo by Mick Melvin: Bloomfield, CT)

(Above two photos by Dave Brigham: in the Webster Conservation Area, Newton, MA)