Three well-known bands with roots in Vermont -- the Mammals, Kat Wright, and Caitlin Canty -- will all perform at Knoll Farm in August as part of the farm's Raise the Barn concert series to support the renovation of the historic McLaughlin Barn that is the heart and soul of the farm.
Exactly 100 years ago, the McLaughlin family living at Knoll Farm saw the opportunity to expand their dairy. They took down a barn on the Mad River in Moretown, hauled it up Bragg Hill Road by oxen, and built it into a hillside to allow loose hay to be loaded from the ramp at the top, and cows to be milked in the bottom. Many of these "high-rise" barns can still be seen around the Mad River Valley and are unique to Vermont hill farms.
The McLaughlin family moved after the Great Depression. In World War II, the barn they raised by hand housed Camp MacArthur, where children whose parents were away at war came up from cities to provide added labor to farms. In the 1970s the barn was the Knoll Farm Peace and Justice Center run by Ann Day. In the 1980s the barn housed central American refugees on their way to Canada. And for the last 25 years, the same barn has been a gathering space for community activists and justice leaders from across North America through the nonprofit programs currently hosted at Knoll Farm.
Current Knoll Farm owners Peter Forbes and Helen Whybrow know that to save this important barn, which is on the National Historic Register, some major work needs to be done. “It needs a new foundation, new electrical wiring, and in order to be fully functional for the programs they run, to be handicapped accessible and have a kitchen and running water. The renovation plans include space for expanded food storage and processing as well as upgrades to the sheep operation,” Whybrow said.
Their hope is that decades from now, Knoll Farm and her barn will continue to be a working farm, a hub of this community, and a resource for new generations of people, ideas, and movements for change.
Knoll Farm will bring bands to the outdoor stage in August, and hope to raise a total of $100,000 at the three concerts to benefit the barn restoration. The Mammals will play on August 9, Kat Wright on August 17, and Caitlin Canty on August 24. Bring a picnic, and sit on the hillside with grand views of the entire Valley. At the final show, the farm will be auctioning a 1961 Jeep Willys. For more information, go to Knollfarm.org/music.
