Nominate your favorite Shelby County barns for a new book

Local authors Rachael Ackley and Greg Weaver are planning a book about Shelby County’s most notable barns and are seeking your suggestions and recommendations.

“The aim is to capture a significant chapter in the county’s agricultural history before it’s too late,” Weaver said, “and to encourage preservation of these priceless pieces of history.”

In the late 1990s, Indiana was estimated to have more than 30,000 post-and-beam barns — many of them more than a century old, according to the Indiana Barn Foundation. The Indianapolis Star reported that only about 20,000 remained in 2013, and the number continues to dwindle.

Ackley and Weaver hope to capture vivid images and stirring tales of the county’s most interesting barns. That means the barns could be historically significant, remembered as a beloved part of childhood or now serve as a home, man cave or some other interesting purpose.

Share your nominations for barns that should be included in the book by contacting Weaver at 317-643-1151 or gregoryeweaver@gmail.com. Please describe the barn’s location, unique features and ownership, if possible.

Weaver, who grew up on a farm south of Boggstown, will use his more than 40 years of experience as a journalist at The Indianapolis Star and the Indianapolis Business Journal, to tell the stories of Shelby County’s most captivating barns. 

Ackley, an accomplished design and marketing professional and executive director of the Shelby County Tourism & Visitors Bureau, will take the photographs for the coffee table book, which is expected to be available by fall 2027.