Schutz Barn

Kenny and Gail Schutz own one of the most fascinating historical barns in the entire county. To some it is known as the Underground Railroad Barn. There is a definite lack of documentation about the farm. However, people in favor of emancipation and who participated in the safe passage of former slaves to freedom would more than likely have been very secretive about their actions.

Many clues lead us to the conclusion that this structure was a stop for these slaves. The barn is thought to have been built around 1821 and the one porthole found is in the mid-section of the structure. This indicates that a portion was built later. The Schutz Family began renovating the barn in 2003 to clear out more space to accommodate machinery and feed storage. While removing an old feed bunk, beneath they found a hidden door. There was three feet of silt and other materials that was dug out and uncovered a secret two room area with a stone floor and metal barred windows within the fieldstone foundation. Was this where the slaves sought refuge?

Anne Walker of the organization Freedom Trails was called in to investigate. She discovered something they had not. A faded red star was located on a barn beam near the secret door. This was a symbol known as the North Star. Ms. Walker claimed this was a “common marker to denote a site as a safe haven for African Americans as they made their way north to freedom.”

No one knows for sure what happened here, but a piece of Civil War history and a reminder of our past may exist among us. The Schutz barn with the North Star Quilt Block is Independently sponsored.

North-Schutz Barn