Key Takeaways
If you ’ve ever ride through a rural area , it ’s potential that you ’ve seen the red barn that speckle the farming landscape painting . There are several theories as to why barns are painted red .
Centuries ago , European farmers would seal the wood on their barn with an oil , often linseed oil – a tawny - colored fossil oil derive from the seed of the flax industrial plant . They would paint their barn with a flaxseed - oil mixture , often consisting of increase such as Milk River and linden . The compounding produce a long - endure paint that dried and hardened quickly . ( Today , flaxseed crude is sell in most home - improvement depot as a wood sealant ) . Now , where does the red amount from ?
In historically accurate terms , " barn cherry-red " is not the shining , fire - enginered that we often see today , but more of a burn - orange red . As to how the oil concoction became traditionally red , there are two predominant theories :
Regardless of how the farmer tinted his blusher , having a red b became a fashionable affair . They were a sharp contrast to the traditional white farmhouse .
As European settler crossed over to America , they brought with them the custom of red barn . In the mid to former 1800s , as paints begin to be produced with chemical pigments , red paint was the most inexpensive to grease one’s palms . Red was the color of favour until whitewash became cheaper , at which point livid barns began to spring up .
Today , the color of barns can vary , often depending on how the barns are used .
For more selective information on barns , farm and related topics , check out the data link on the next page .
