Description of Historic Place

Storage Building 9, at the Bar U Ranch is a simple, rectangular, one-storey building with a single entrance and very low walls only four to five logs high. The round log construction has dovetail notched corners. It has an exaggerated expanse of steep gabled roof covered with cedar shingles and has a prominent eave overhang. The low walls, the steep squat roof and the close relationship to grade result in a massing that has a whimsical character. The building has one door with a transom above, and one small window to the left of the door. The colour scheme of Storage building 9, (barn red walls and white trim), keeps with the tradition across the Prairies and visually links it to the other buildings on site. The house is believed to have been constructed in the late 1880s as part of the first phase of building of the ranch. The designation is confined to the footprint of the building.

Heritage Value

Storage building 9 is a Classified Federal Heritage Building because of its historical associations, and its architectural and environmental values:

Historical value:
Storage building 9 is one of the best examples of the national theme of the development of ranching in Alberta, and its importance in the development of Canada. The building and its two companions served as storage facilities for food, fuel and ice. The structure was erected during the time of George Lane, who was hired at Bar in 1884 to serve as the ranch foreman and who ran the ranch between 1902 and 1925. Storage building 9 is a component of the Bar U Ranch National Historic Site. It is also associated with Patrick Burns, who purchased the Bar U Ranch in 1927 to add to his vast cattle empire. Burns who is recognized as the kingpin of the meat processing industry in western Canada during the mid-1920s, has been designated a person of national significance.

Architectural value:
The Storage Building is an excellent example of agricultural dwellings built during the early stages of settlement in Canada. It serves as an example of traditional log design by skilled builders. It stands out because of its rounded log construction. The introduction of structures like this one heralded a larger degree of permanence and stability at the ranch. Storage Building 9 is important as one of the key buildings in a cohesive purpose built complex. The building incorporates good quality materials and craftsmanship. Its value lies in its functional design and form, simple massing and, common construction details, exterior finish, interior layout and setting.

Environmental value:
As part of a cohesive complex of buildings arranged to great functional effect in a simple and beautiful setting Storage Building 9 contributes significantly to the character of the Bar U Ranch. This landmark value is reinforced by the designation of the complex as a National Historic Site.

Sources:
Edward Mills, Historic Bar U Ranch Headquarters, Longview, Alberta. 92-017
Storage Building 9, Bar U Ranch, Longview, Alberta. Heritage Character Statement 92-017

Character-Defining Elements

The following character-defining elements of Storage Building 9 should be respected, for example:

Its log construction and good quality materials and craftsmanship as manifested in:

- the natural high quality, locally cut logs as the primary construction material.
- the rounded log wall construction.
- the undivided interior with milled boards over stud frame.
- its simple and plain massing
- the gable walls of rough cut milled lumber, sheathed with shingles.
- the roof pole rafters.
- the red and white colour scheme.

The manner in which the building reinforces the character and setting of the Bar U Ranch.