The 1850 Pioneer log barn at Living History Farms was filmed by Fourth Wall Films for the new documentary The Barn Raisers. Living History Farms is a Silos & Smokestacks National Heritage Area partner site.
Filming on the new documentary The Barn Raisers by Emmy-nominated documentary filmmakers Kelly & Tammy Rundle of Fourth Wall Films is in full swing in Iowa, with production in Wisconsin and Ohio to follow.
The project received a grant from Silos and Smokestacks National Heritage Area through the project's fiscal sponsor, KPTS-PBS, to document historic barns and stories in the northeast third of the state of Iowa. Filming took place at Tyden Farm No. 6 in Dougherty, Iowa; Harriman Nielsen Historic Farm in Hampton; Ackley Heritage Center Barn in Ackley; the Barn Quilts of Grundy County; the 1860 Communal Agriculture barn in South Amana; the Hardin County Farm Museum Barn in Eldora; and at Living History Farms in Urbandale where three barns attract tourists to the site's farming experience.
Silos & Smokestacks and its partners interpret rural heritage by using six themes. Each theme explores different aspects of agriculture. The themes help visitors interpret and experience the story many ways: in small towns and large cities; on trails and county roads; and through farms, natural areas, local museums and historical buildings.
The Barn Raisers also received grants from Humanities Iowa (fiscal sponsor KPTS-PBS), the Wisconsin Humanities Council (fiscal sponsor the Richland County Historical Society) and the Ohio Humanities Council (fiscal sponsor Friends of Ohio Barns).
The documentary is slated for release in 2016.