Round Barn Capital of the World in Rochester, Indiana

Your typical barn employs a rectangular shape, with various styles of roofing. However, rectangular barns use material inefficiently; a round design allows a larger area to be enclosed by the same amount of siding. By the early 20th century, round barns were faster, cheaper, and easier to build than rectangular barns, while land-grant colleges like Purdue University heralded them as the future of agriculture. Starting around 1910, local developer Charles Vallandingham Kindig built the majority of Fulton County’s once-17 round barns. However, round barns soon fell out of fashion as farmers began to utilize bulky machines that were stored best in the traditional rectangular shape. As many round barns were falling into disrepair, the Fulton County Round Barn Museum began rehoming and restoring them in 1989.