Old barns tie us back to our history, some more than others. When Mick Marhevka purchased his property between Carlisle and Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in 1987, he quickly fell in love with the old bank barn and log cabin on his 34 acres. The barn is a traditional Deutsch-style post and beam barn built in the 1700’s for livestock and hay storage by German settlers which are prevalent throughout Pennsylvania.
The original barn and log house were built in 1743 on a 200-acre parcel deeded to homesteaders by William Penn in 1738. The original barn's smaller foundation still exists on the lower level of the current barn which was enlarged and rebuilt in 1847 as indicated by the hand-painted markers on the beams.
On July 1, 1863, on their way to the famous Battle of Gettysburg, Confederate troops traveled through the area as they reached Carlisle, Pennsylvania, their northernmost point in the war where they turned South to meet the advancing Union Army. According to troop movement maps, their path put them within 400 yards of the barn. While there is no documented usage of the property by Confederate troops, an old glass bottle with the casting mark “Charleston, SC” was found buried in the lower level of the barn.
The current barn exterior of pine siding showed tremendous wear at over 100 years of age, and Mick wanted to rebuild and return the barn as close to its original state as possible. In 2023, he began exterior restoration of the barn, including rebuilding the equipment shed, windows, and the weathervane lightning rod. To maintain the building's historical significance, custom 12-inch-wide tongue and groove wood siding was made by Spartan Forest Products in their ThermaPro Wood thermally modified pine.
Thermally modified pine wood was chosen for the cladding because of its durability and resistance to rotting, warping, cracking, and insects. When replacing pine barn siding that lasted for over a hundred years, he wanted to ensure it lasted for another hundred years or more while also utilizing a similar wood species for authenticity. While the cladding is sealed with penetrating oil, no UV protectant was used so that the wood can silver to a naturally aged patina within a few years without the cracking or shifting that occurred on the old wood siding.
The existing windows were rebuilt utilizing both old and new components. New period-style lower and upper-level windows were added to make the interior more usable by allowing natural light and airflow. The newly constructed windows were dated 1847 and 2024 to indicate the original and addition timeframes.
A weathervane, found in the muck of the cow pen at the base of the barn, dated to the late 1800s indicating its original placement was on the enlarged barn built in 1847. While it required some newer parts to achieve a complete rebuild, and some handcrafting by Mick himself, it is now remounted in its place of honor atop the barn.
Mick has been working to gather as much history as possible on the buildings that have stood on his land for 280 years. They and their occupants, members of the original 13 colonies of the United States, saw the writing and adoption of the Articles of Confederation just 30 miles away in York, Pennsylvania in 1781; the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863 during the American Civil War raged just 4 miles away; the industrial revolution in the early 1900’s; the Great Depression and World War 2 in the late 1900’s not to mention the advent of electricity, automobiles, telephones, television, and computers. If only walls could talk, oh the stories this beautiful barn could tell.
“I consider myself a steward of this historic building”, stated owner Mick Marhevka. “My goal is to ensure it will stand strong for another 100 years.”
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