Many homeowners say they would build another Yankee Barn. Brad and Audrey Monroe did, twice. As their needs changed from primary residence to vacation retreat to retirement home, they designed a Yankee Barn to fit their lifestyle.
Their first Yankee Barn built in 1976 as a primary residence followed the rambling architecture
of New England barns using a main frame adding two ells then numerous additions over the years as the family’s needs grew. Their second Yankee Barn, a vacation retreat built in 1984, used trusses for support so no posts or interior walls would interfere with the open first floor.
“We loved the idea of wood and of the beams. I can’t imagine not living with wood,” said Audrey.
In 1997, when it came time to build a retirement home, Audrey knew what she wanted, “We envisioned a larger country kitchen and a living room with big curved windows and atrium doors.”
“Each Yankee Barn is so unique,” said Audrey. “With Yankee Barn, you can make your home the way you want.”
“Everyone at Yankee Barn was easy to work with,” said Brad. “If you have an idea, they see what they can do with it. Yankee Barn helped us put it all together and came up with solutions to what we wanted.”
Asked if they would do it again, “Yes,” said Audrey, “It’s not really a home unless it’s a Yankee Barn.”

Each Yankee Barn is a Custom Design.
From a sketch on a piece of graph paper, Joan and Roger Renke worked with a Yankee Barn designer to turn their ideas into the home they wanted.
“We wanted tall open ceilings and as many windows as possible to face the mountain. We wanted an open feeling to our home. We did not want it to be compartmentalized,” said Roger.
Joan and Roger visited Yankee Barn and brought a sketch based on the layout of a friend’s house. One of the Yankee Barn designers developed the ideas into plans, helped site the house to take advantage of the views and gain southern exposure in the winter, and incorporated new ideas along the way.
“Yankee Barn added constructive ideas all along the way and gave us solutions that may be less expensive,” said Roger. “They made us feel that we were designing our house.”
“Yankee Barn was able to adapt any idea into the plan. We would describe our ideas on the phone, then we couldn’t wait to get the drawings in the mail,” said Joan.
“Throughout the design process we felt everyone at Yankee Barn was in it with us,” said Joan. “We were doing this together.”

Choose the Barn Shape for Your Lifestyle.
During a search for a retirement home in New Hampshire, Nancy and David Brazier discovered the flexibility of a Yankee Barn. After looking at nearly 20 homes including five or six Yankee Barns, they realized building was the only way to have their wish list.
“Every Yankee Barn had a different layout,” said Dave. “We had the flexibility to get what we wanted inside and out. We didn’t have to compromise on the layout we wanted.”
“With Yankee Barn, we could have the best of both worlds. We have the old world charm of the post and beam construction with new modern conveniences,” said Nancy.
Dave and Nancy worked with one of the Yankee Barn designers to turn their wish list into a floor plan. Using a combination of frames, frame extensions, and dormers, they enclosed the living spaces they wanted. The design fit their lifestyle, blended with the environment, and took advantage of views from as many rooms as possible.
“The people at Yankee Barn made suggestions, gave ideas, and were an all-around great resource,” said Dave. “Yankee Barn was there for us, not just during the design, but through the whole process from siting the house and locating the driveway to interviewing builders and consulting on interior finishes.”
“We can’t believe we are here,” said Nancy. “Sometimes we pinch ourselves to make sure that it isn’t a dream.”

Craftsmen Create Each Barn Home
from Select Seasoned Timbers.
A barn home had the connection to the land that Michael and Renée Gold were looking for. The rambling architecture blended into the landscape and the post and beam frame captured a sense of history, a timelessness.
“Why a barn? It has a sense of history. A barn is an old, successful structure that is one with the landscape. It gives a sense of permanence,” said Renée.
The Golds’ frame was crafted piece by piece in the Yankee Barn frame shop where craftsmen cut, notched and finished each post and beam from carefully chosen seasoned timbers.
“Our home could be a statement of the way we like to live,” said Renée. “We could be creative and have a home with its own identity.”

Each Design is a Work of Art by the Homeowners.
Starting with the classic, simple lines of the Mark I frame, David and Jane Bates created an open, contemporary look in their Yankee Barn.
“We liked the simplicity of the rectangular design,” said David. “Though many people start from the same place, it is surprising the variations that one can do.”
On a visit to the model home, David and Jane designed the layout of their Yankee Barn with the guidance of the Yankee Barn design team. Though many homeowners choose to expand the living space with frame extensions, such as ells, greenhouses, and granaries, David and Jane found the basic Mark I frame enclosed the floor plan they wanted.
“A Yankee Barn can be anything you want to make it,” said Jane.
“In a Yankee Barn, you have the post and beams you could not have with other houses. The wood adds so much pleasure to living inside the house. You are looking at the architecture on the inside of the house. The house itself is a work of art.”

Built One at a Time from the Finest Quality Materials.
Overlooking one of upstate New York’s Finger Lakes stands Ed and Sandy Dalrymple’s Yankee Barn. After turning their ideas for living spaces into floor and frame plans, Ed and Sandy selected finish materials and placed windows to achieve the look they envisioned.
“I had a lot of questions, but the process was fairly easy. The people at Yankee Barn were very nice to work with,” said Sandy.
The Yankee Barn was then built in the protected, controlled environment of the workshop. The post and beam frame was crafted from strong seasoned timbers. Wall, floor, and roof panels, along with specialty millwork, were constructed and insulated with the best materials to arrive on site complete inside and out. The Yankee Barn was packed for shipment and raised on site. Inside the weathertight shell, the builder finished the home.
“They were very good on the details. Everything they said they would do, they did,” said Ed, owner of a construction business. “It all fit together. We were very satisfied with everything.”
Nestled on a wooded lot in Grantham, New Hampshire, Melvyn and Joan Gelch’s Yankee Barn combines wide open expanses and a casual and relaxed atmosphere in a low maintenance vacation home.
They called on Yankee Barn designers for the layout and siting, and the New York City interior architectural firm of Arthur Zweck-Bronner for furnishings and color schemes.
For their exterior, they chose vertical shiplap siding. Inside, the Great Room extends from a magnificent field stone fireplace through living, dining and kitchen areas. For materials, they chose beams with a light stain, random width plank flooring in southern yellow pine and Yankee Barn stairsets, railings, and balusters.

A Yankee Barn is the Perfect Addition to Any Home.
When Tony Panzetta and Kevyn Malloy originally talked about owning a weekend getaway, Kevyn dragged out an article about a Yankee Barn home.
“It was my dream home,” said Kevyn. “I loved all the light, the airiness, the spaciousness, all the windows.”
They started looking for property, but found a six-acre wooded lot in Buck’s County, Pennsylvania with a house they couldn’t pass up. When the country retreat became their primary residence, they turned back to Yankee Barn to design extra rooms for Kevyn’s office, a large living room to entertain guests, and a master bedroom suite.
Tony and Kevyn found a trip to the Yankee Barn workshop and model to be helpful. “I needed three dimensions. I needed to walk around in the space,” said Kevyn.
“I was worried about the flow from the old to new. The house looks like it’s always been together. People don’t know the old from the new,” said Kevyn.

Traditional Frame and Modern Panels are Raised on Site.
Though Peggy and Michael Buchness worked on their plans for over a year, their 3900 square foot barn home was built in the Yankee Barn workshop in just three weeks, shipped by truck to their Maryland site, and raised by their builder in only seven days.
“This is not a traditional way to build a house,” said Michael. “We wanted to work with the most experienced company. We had confidence working with Yankee Barn.”
“Yankee Barn has a number of
different basic models to start from. Each one has been done many times before, so it is not an experiment. We knew we had a solid shell that would work construction-wise.”
“All the Yankee Barn people were great to work with. They gave us personalized service,” said Michael. “Our builder was able to estimate almost to the dollar how much it would cost to finish our house. So with Yankee Barn’s cost proposal and our builder’s estimate, we knew what we would be spending.”
“Yankee Barn is a top notch, quality product. Anyone who has seen our house is impressed with the quality. They gave us their full support both before and after we bought their product.”

Join the Yankee Barn Family of Homeowners.
Through these pages, we have introduced you to a few Yankee Barn homeowners. Beyond the homes featured here and in the following sections of your Design Guide there are many other unique stories. Yankee Barn homeowners are creative, independent thinkers who seek the extraordinary. They are originals from many walks of life including an aviator, sailor, actor, illustrator, educator, violinist, and apple farmer, just to name a few, and their homes are as diverse as their professions.
Most heard about us from a friend and fell in love with Yankee Barn after standing in one, either our model home or a Yankee Barn in their area, and gathered ideas from visits to many homes. Almost all come back to visit us, to tell us and other homeowners their story with pictures for our albums. Some even contribute to our newsletters or host open houses. Many are so proud of their Yankee Barn that they would be happy to talk with you or to open their home to you.
We hope you decide to join this family of Yankee Barn homeowners.

Come Visit Us, and Spend the Night in Our Model Home.
Take some time to get to know us, and to tell us what you want in your home. We have been crafting homes since 1969. Over the years, we have enjoyed getting to know our customers one-on-one.
To learn more, visit our website at www.yankeebarnhomes.com. Study or browse through our Design Guide. Then, come visit us and see our model home.
No need to rush through. We don’t believe in just a quick walk through before you buy. You can live in this Yankee Barn for the night. No cost, no obligation, no pressure. The next morning, a Yankee Barn designer will answer your questions, and, only if you are ready, begin the design of your home.
Our model home in Grantham, New Hampshire is just minutes from Interstate 89, an easy two-hour drive from Boston, just five hours from New York City. If you live outside New England, fly in to Boston, Manchester, or nearby Lebanon, New Hampshire, and we’ll reimburse airfare for two if you buy a Yankee Barn.
To schedule your visit, call 1-800-258-9786. We hope to see you soon.