The Barns of Montana
by Chere Jiusto and Christine W. Brown
photographs by Tom Ferris
Symbols of the agricultural settlement that transformed Montana’s landscape and culture, barns bring to mind images of people drawing their living from the land. Stone barns, round barns, ethnic barns, dairy barns, some veritable castles for racehorses, others hewn from rough logs—they were all built to serve utilitarian purposes: sheltering livestock and storing crops and equipment. As these handcrafted buildings reach a venerable age, some of them having survived a hundred years and more, we recognize them not only for their utility but also for their beauty. Photographer Tom Ferris’s color images capture the barns’ majestic exteriors as well as telling details of their construction, use, and preservation. The photographs are accompanied by stories of individual barns and their builders. Hand Raised: The Barns of Montana recognizes these invaluable buildings, encourages their preservation, and honors the ranch and farm families that built them.
320 pages, full color, 500+ illus., paper, ISBN 978-0-980129-20-5, $27.95 