Rural Missouri - December 2021 - 18

Capturing the heart
of the farm
Jayne Williams photographs the barns of Maries County
Jayne Williams shot this barn owned by Rickey Waidelich for her 2022 calendar. Rickey has fond memories of summers spent stacking hay to the rafters.
by Zach Smith | zsmith@ruralmissouri.coop
ravel the back roads of Missouri and you're sure
to spot the right barn at the right time. It might be
just around the bend as the fi rst snowfall of the
year swirls around the eaves, or atop the next hill
framed by a glowing harvest moon. Or it could be found as
it has been on most days of many years, silently overlooking
the cropland and pasture and standing as a symbol of
that old saying: " The more things change, the more they
remain the same. "
Born and raised on a farm in Maries County,
T
Jayne Williams knows these local symbols well
and she knows why they capture the eyes and
imaginations of those who are struck by their
rural beauty.
" I think people have so many memories in
barns when they were kids because that was the
gathering spot on their farm, " Jayne says. " I've
often heard my dad talk about how the barn was
the fi rst thing built because they made their living out of it.
If barns could talk, what stories they would tell. "
As the Maries County tax collector, Jayne was not only
familiar with the area's barns but also followed the University
of Missouri Extension's Century Farm listings. Putting
these facts together, she realized a fair number of her
county neighbors had barns that were not only still in the
18 RURAL MISSOURI | DECEMBER 2021
Vienna
family 100 years later, but in many cases still being used.
" It mesmerized me they were still square, " the Intercounty
Electric Cooperative member recalls. " The cobblestone
foundations were in good shape, and they're still
standing proud and tall. "
Traveling the countryside, she knew that wasn't the
case for every old barn. Some lose a long battle to the
elements and neglect, still standing but sagging and long
abandoned. Jayne wanted to document those that she
found in better condition and share them with her fellow
Maries Countians so that they could always be
remembered as they once were. Inspired by Howard
Marshall's book, " Barns of Missouri: Storehouses of
History, " she decided to photograph the best of the
old barns she came across and put together a
calendar.
" I know a lot of people may not use calendars
anymore, but some people do. It's something
just about everybody might have hanging
in their kitchen, " Jayne says of her chosen
publishing format. She adds that she includes
the owners' names, the year the barn was constructed
and, if it's a Century Farm, when it was registered. " It puts
a little more history on it than if I was framing it for the
wall. "
The resulting " 2019 Maries County Century Farm
Barns " was a hit, selling all 150 copies in short order. A

Rural Missouri - December 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - December 2021