Explore the NH Barn Trail
Take a scenic drive through New Hampshire’s countryside and discover the stories, craftsmanship and character behind some of the state’s historic barns. Along the way, you’re sure to find plenty of reasons to stop and explore. From museums and farm stands to ice cream, local shops and more!
Share Your Adventure
Share your NH Barn Trail adventures on Instagram and tag @nhbarntrail. When you visit a site, let them know you found them through the NH Barn Trail.
If you’re ready to explore, simply pick a region below and start planning your NH Barn Trail adventure. The NH Barn Trail is an invitation to slow down, explore our back roads and discover a different side of New Hampshire.
Great North Country Region
White Mountain Region
Dartmouth/Lake Sunapee Region
Lakes Region
Monadnock Region
Seacoast Region
Merrimack Valley Region
Great North Woods Region
Maynesboro and Thompson Barns (Berlin & Coos County Historical Society), Berlin, NH
These two barns provide tangible links to Berlin’s past as home of the Brown Company paper mill, and William Robinson Brown’s renowned horse breeding operations. Today, the barns are operated as a museum, ensuring that the public can continue to learn and benefit from the preservation of these historic agricultural structures.
Pioneer Farm, Columbia, NH
Included in the National Register of Historic Places, the property features a horse barn and a dairy barn. The Wallace family has lived on the farm and served as its stewards since the late eighteenth century.
The Poore Farm Historic Homestead and Museum, Stewartstown, NH
The Poore Farm features three barns, all of which were constructed in the first half of the 19th century. The main barn includes a high drive accessed by a rare covered wooden ramp.
White Mountains Region
Douglas A. Philbrook Red Barn Museum, Gorham, NH
Sitting at the base of the Mt. Washington Auto Road, the museum features an engaging collection of carriages, coaches, antique vehicles, and associated artifacts relating to the history of the auto road.
Trickey Barn (Jackson Public Library), Jackson, NH
Now repurposed as a public library, the Trickey Barn is a classic example of a New England style barn. Moved from its original location and formed by the joining of two separate barns, it is believed to have been erected by the same carpenters who built the Jackson Covered Bridge.
Remick Country Doctor Museum, Tamworth, NH
The nearly 100-acre museum property includes two homes, three barns, and several outbuildings, and was farmed by six generations of Remicks beginning in 1790. The museum offers scenic grounds for learning about rural life and history.
The Rocks Carriage Barn and Pig Barn, Bethlehem, NH
A highlight of this NH Forest Society property is an 1884 carriage barn, which has been restored and adapted to serve visitors and staff. The grounds feature a variety of historic buildings, trails, and a Christmas tree farm.
Dartmouth/Lake Sunapee Region
Cleveland Barns at Colby Sawyer College (Susan Colgate Cleveland Library/Learning Center), New London, NH
This college library is composed of two New England style barns oriented perpendicularly to each other, each framed with heavy timbers, anchored onto stone foundations, and adorned with cupolas.
Church Family Cow Barn (Enfield Shaker Museum), Enfield, NH
This barn is one of a group of Shaker agricultural buildings known as Great Barns. Constructed in Shaker communities between the 1820s and 1880s, such barns were designed for maximum efficiency while working with large dairy herds. Today, these barns represent the significance of agriculture to the Shaker lifestyle and culture.
Lyme Historians’ Barn, Lyme, NH
Erected circa 1820, this barn was most likely moved from another location, although it is not known where or when. At this site, the barn’s original owner was Judge David Carrol Churchill, a lawyer, general store shopkeeper, deputy sheriff, county judge, and Grafton County Commissioner.
Muster Field Farm Museum, North Sutton, NH
This barn is a rare example of the transition from the English style of barn construction to the New England or “Yankee” style. Muster Field Farm offers exhibits, special events, and a farm stand for visitors to enjoy.
New London Historical Society Historical Village, New London, NH
The New London Historical Society oversees a Historical Village with two barns on site, the Griffin Barn (an English-style horse barn) and the Phillips Barn (a New England-style barn).
Washington Historical Society Barn, Washington, NH
This Yankee-style barn dates back to the 1850s, a time period considered to be the heyday of New Hampshire agriculture. The barn and adjacent museum are open to visitors seasonally.
Lakes Region
Hobbs/Leavitt Barn (Gilmanton Year-Round Library), Gilmanton, NH
Originally built in North Hampton, the Hobbs/Leavitt Barn was disassembled and moved to Gilmanton in the early 2000s. It has since been re-purposed as a public library, making the historic building visible and accessible for all to enjoy.
New Hampshire Farm Museum, Milton, NH
On the National Register of Historic Places, this scenic working farm and museum depicts the evolution of local agriculture and industry. The property includes the adjacent Jones and Plummer farms, their houses and barns, and numerous outbuildings such as a blacksmith shop, cobbler shoppe, and cider press.
Quimby Barn (Sandwich Historical Society), Center Sandwich, NH
This Yankee-style barn offers a museum as well as tours of the main level and carriage house. It is free to visit and is home to a collection of antique carriages and features photographic and interpretive displays of early modes of transportation.
Prescott Farm Environmental Education Center, Laconia, NH
Prescott Farm’s 1883 barn is nestled within a 160-acre hillside location, affording beautiful views of the surrounding fields and nearby mountains. Today, visitors can enjoy gardens, nature trails, and a variety of public educational programs on site.
Surowiec Farm Barn, Sanbornton, NH
Perched atop a scenic hill in the Lakes Region, Surowiec Farm provides a classic New England farm setting for visitors to enjoy, with seasonal offerings including a greenhouse, farm store, and pick-your-own fruits and berries.
Monadnock Region
Franklin Pierce Barn, Hillsborough, NH
The Franklin Pierce Homestead Historic Site is the childhood home of the 14th president of the United States. Franklin’s father, Benjamin, bought the farm in 1802. Visitors may enjoy the grounds as well as indoors exhibits.
Seacoast Region
Drake Barn (Hubbingtons Furniture), North Hampton, NH
Included in the National Register of Historic Places, the Drake Barn provides an example of the attached “big house, little house, back house, barn” farmstead, which were common in the 19th century. Visitors today can appreciate the details of its original construction, which were preserved through its conversion to a retail setting.
Hobbs Barn (Throwback Brewery), North Hampton, NH
Now a brewery and eatery, the Hobbs Barn provides a compelling example of how a historic agricultural structure can be repurposed and modernized for a new use, while retaining much of its original appearance and materials.
Leavitt Barn (Hampton Historical Society), Hampton, NH
The Leavitt Barn is home to the Hampton Historical Society’s Tuck Museum and offers special exhibits and displays for visitors, as well as a beautiful 18th Century herb garden that demonstrates historical gardening techniques.
Raynes Barn, Exeter, NH
The massive Raynes Barn is part of a beautiful property that is open to the public for hiking, bird watching, and enjoying grasslands, woods, and river frontage. Much of the land is still farmed today.
Merrimack Valley Region
Beech Hill Farm, Hopkinton, NH
This award-winning farm has been in the Kimball family for 9 generations. It is a family-friendly destination with numerous activities and offerings, including ice cream and corn mazes.
Broad Barn at NH Audubon Massabesic Center, Auburn, NH
Massabesic Center occupies the site of the historic Brown Farm and offers educational programs on nature and the environment to youth and adults. Walking trails meander through gardens, grasslands, woods, and wetlands and connect with a larger trail network in the Massabesic Lake watershed.
Countrybrook Farms, Hudson, NH
Countrybrook Farms sits on historic farmland once known as Kashulines Farm, a 1906 dairy and produce operation. Its 250-year-old barn now anchors a family-run garden center established in 1997, offering a wide selection of plants, trees, shrubs, bulk mulch and soil, hardscaping materials, and gardening supplies.
Gould Hill Farm, Contoocook, NH
Gould Hill Farm has been in operation continuously since the mid-1700s. The location boasts outstanding views of the White Mountains and Lakes Region. Today, the farm is also home to Contoocook Cider Company, as well as a farm store and bakery that offers a variety of foods and goods for purchase.
Lawrence Barn Community Center, Hollis, NH
At this unique site, several old barns from different time periods were dismantled and combined into one structure, now used for community events.
Parmenter Barn (Londonderry Historical Society), Londonderry, NH
Built in 1859, it was the last barn in Londonderry to be built at a community barn raising, according to the Londonderry Historical Society. The barn was moved to its current location, where it was reconstructed over time.
Robert Frost Barn, Derry, NH
Four-time Nobel Prize-winning poet Robert Frost and his family lived at this historic site from 1900 to 1909. While living here, he farmed, taught at Pinkerton Academy and wrote much of the work that would eventually be published in his first three books.
Sandown Red Barn, Sandown, NH
Managed by Sandown Conservation Commission, this English-style post and beam barn showcases a variety of interesting and representative architectural details.