Eden Valley’s barns were researched in 2003-2004 as part of Wyoming’s Barn Again! event sponsored by the Wyoming Council for the Humanities. The amateur historians of The Eden Valley History Project collaborated to research Eden Valley’s barns to further their goals of documenting the area’s past. The resulting program, based on their research, “If Barns Could Talk: Finding Eden in Wyoming’s High Desert” was presented at ten locations throughout the state during 2004.  The photographs and information displayed in our gallery are the result of that Barn Again! program.

Keeler Barn - about 1910

The presentation argues that barns are emblematic of rural communities, revealing the history and character of the community and its ties to agriculture. Eden Valley barns reveal the history of the area, telling the story of resilient people determined to turn the desert into a garden from its early settlement around 1908 to the present. Despite hardships, people have persisted in living in the Eden Valley and have adapted their barns as agricultural practices have changed over time.

Eden Valley Barns Today

Dennison Barn

Barns reflect the changes that took place when dairymen shifted raising cattle and sheep and growing grain and hay to feed them.  Some barns were again used primarily to shelter animals and store crops.  Increasing numbers of people who did not work in agriculture began to move to Eden Valley.  When they bought places with old barns they often converted them to non-traditional uses.  Some became woodworking shops.  Another barn has been converted for meat packing and storage.  The former granary at the old Keeler barn has been converted into a photographic dark room. 

What The Barns Tell Us...

As we listen to what Eden Valley barns tell us, we hear a consistent theme throughout the history of the community: the desire to create a personal Eden in the high plains desert of Wyoming.  For Eden Valley settlers, as well as present day residents, making the desert bloom has been an uphill struggle, but the old barns provide a constant reminder of the good times that made those struggles worthwhile.