Anderson Barn
NW 20-11-18W,
Forrest area

Designation Date: November 6, 1989
Designation Authority: The R.M. of Elton
Present Owner: privately owned

Settlers arriving in Manitoba from Ontario in the 1870s and 1880s, like other immigrant groups, brought their own distinct building traditions with them. Besides their houses and churches, the barn is a distinct part of their architectural heritage. There are several ways to distinguish a southern Ontario barn: a gable-roofed loft; a solid fieldstone foundation set into a hill (and thus providing easy access on the lower side into the stable and from the upper level into the hay loft); and finally, the cladding of the upper walls with vertical board and batten siding. This barn, built in 1903 by William Anderson, who settled in the area in 1889, is a model of the type. Because these buildings are fast disappearing (due to changes in the agricultural economy) the preservation of this barn is impressive, a tribute to the Anderson family, who have maintained it through the years.