The Hutmacher Farm Falls into Disrepair
As the roof failed, the interior walls began to deteriorate
The Dunn Country Historical Society took possession of the farm in 1981. They erected a marker on the site of the Hutmacher complex and made plans to place signs to direct people to the site.
Stone-slab buildings don’t require expensive materials to construct and maintain. In fact, all the materials are readily available nearby, but these buildings do require a lot of ongoing maintenance. Each year, clay needs to be added to the roofs and the exterior “render coating” needs to be reapplied.
Unfortunately, by 1981, people who knew how to care for and maintain these stone-slab buildings were dying off and that knowledge wasn’t being passed along to subsequent generations.
While the stone-slab structures on the Hutmacher site were built to last, they were not indestructible. Without efforts by people who knew how to maintain the buildings and without yearly maintenance, the buildings slowly started to deteriorate.
The roof was the first component to be affected. As the roof began to fail, the interior ceiling began to sag. Oilcloth on the walls in the kitchen began to peel and the nicely painted render coating on the walls in the other rooms began to flake and fall off. Finally the fir flooring began to rot and deteriorate.
It became apparent that management of the Hutmacher site was too much for the county historical society, and the property was deeded back to Steve Burian.
Farm Falls into Disrepair
