| JANUARY 26, 2012 -- State Sen. Andrew Roraback (R-Goshen) and Todd Levine, director of Historic Barns of Connecticut, which is part of the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, presented a check for $1,500 on Tuesday, Jan. 10, to Benjamin Paletsky for a feasibility study to be done on his family’s historic white barn.
The barn is located on Higbie Road in East Morris and was constructed in 1900 for dairy farm complex, according to a release from the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation.
“This property has been around for more than 200 years. This area right here was originally South Farms. South Farms was an extension of Litchfield,” said Paletsky, the grandson of Sam Paletsky.
According to Paletsky, the area was developed in the 1770s and 1760s, and there are buildings from that era that are still around.
“This area was pretty busy. What we’re investigating right now is how this came about,” said Paletsky. “We have good information from the early 1800s and on. Prior to that, at some point there was a massive effort with oxen and horse to clear this whole area, which is a pretty big deal since it was probably woods before that inhabited by Native Americans.”
“In its heyday, [the barn] was really transformed in the late 1930s and 1940s into the state of the art dairy barn and had between 100 to 150 dairy head of dairy cattle here. It was a pretty busy operation back then,” said Paletsky.
The Connecticut Trust has awarded a total of $102,288 in barns grants to municipalities, non-profit organizations and residents throughout the state.
The grants will make possible a total initial investment of $308,820 in these historic sites. The grants are part of a historic preservation technical assistance and granting program of the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, with funding from the Community Investment Act of the State of Connecticut and the Connecticut General Assembly.
Paletsky said the Morris barn is now part of a venture called South Farms, a joint venture between the Paletsky and Dorsett families.
“Essentially, we’re focusing on the stewardship of the two farms, particularly advocating for cultural preservation in the area, making it accessible to the community,” said Paletsky.
Erica Dorsett Mathews, who is part of the effort to revive the farming operation, said she was excited about the venture, and that it was nice to see farming become prominent again in town.
The families formed South Farms Agricultural, a collaborative effort that will harness the potential of both properties, turning them into a source of locally grown meat and produce for area residents and promote agri-tourism on the property.
“For the state of Connecticut and the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation to be a partner in this ambitious and important undertaking it entirely appropriate,” said Roraback. “This has always been an iconic structure. For it to have new life, it’s a great thing for Morris, a great thing for Litchfield County and a great thing for Connecticut.”
“We’ve done a lot of infrastructure planning in the fields; this grant allows us to focus on the barn structure,” Paletsky said. The families are working with Geitz Design Associates, LLC, an architectural firm from Bristol.
South Farms is currently establishing its infrastructure to be a fully-functional farm and sustainable business. Fields have been cleared and fences erected. As they work at reclaiming the land, the partners also fine tuning their business plan.
For more information visit the Web sites at www.southfarms.org, www.cttrust.org. and http://connecticutbarns.org.
Note: Daniela Forte is a staff writer for The Litchfield County Times. Times’ managing editor Kathryn Boughton contributed to this article. |
