Rustic and refined, this historic barn at Old Carter Farm, overlooks scenic Lake Carey- 5 miles north of Tunkhannock, PA.
Originally used as part of a dairy farm, the barn was built in the post and beam “English Bank” tradition around 1884. In 1911, ownership changed and a “new” addition was added, doubling the square footage.
In the 1950’s, it was converted into a turkey farm by the Carter family but went out of operation and has been left vacant since the 1970’s.
When Douglas Carter Beane, a playwright from New York, inherited the property in 1998, he wondered what to do with this structure that seemed to be a few years away from collapse and sliding down the hill, filled with turkey feathers and rusted farm equipment.
He and his husband, Lewis Flinn, decided to save the structure to honor the rural community of Lake Carey. Then began five years of restoration work. With the help of McNamara Construction, experts in post and beam barn restoration from Northeastern PA, they cleaned out 100 years of dirt and muck, straightened the building, restored the post and beams, added windows, replaced floors, fixed the roof, and added staircases.
THEY FLOATED A HISTORIC GAZEBO ACROSS Lake Carey AND RESTORED TO ITS VICTORIAN GLORY AND ADDED A 500 SQ FOOT STONE PATIO. During the dark days of the 2020/21 pandemic, they REALIZED THEY had an opportunity to use their barn to one day host the joyous events they were missing. They put in electricity, handmade light fixtures, and created a truly unique space ready for weddings, concerts, art shows, theater performances, or large family gatherings starting in the summer of 2021.
