Third barn quilt hung in Lincoln County

Recently, the third barn quilt in Lincoln County was hung on the Koehler farm located at W7569 State Hwy. 64 and 107 west of Merrill. The farm is currently owned by Allen and Carol Koehler. This farm was a 2003 Century Farm Award recipient. The Koehler family joins the Pope-Will family whose farm is located on Pope Road just north of Merrill and the Hanson family whose farm is on Hwy. 17 north of Gleason, in being part of the Lincoln County Barn Quilt Project.
The farm where the quilt is hung was established in 1903 when Reinhold Koehler bought the land and has been in the Koehler family since that time. The barn was built in 1916 and originally used for dairy cows, storing hay and grain. The barn is now used for beef cows along with storing of hay and grain. The Hip Roof Barn was constructed with lumber from woods on the farm and has a stone foundation. The Koehler’s replaced the wood shingles on the barn with a new roof and had the barn recently painted.
Working with Natalie Watland, an artist from the Tomahawk area, the family designed a quilt pattern incorporating a dairy cow representing the original use of the farm and a beef cow representing its current use. The hanging of the quilt was done by the Koehler family. The Koehler family takes great pride in their farm and hopes that it will always stay in the Koehler family.
Through the cooperation of the University of Wisconsin-Extension Lincoln County, the Merrill Historical Society, Lincoln County Farm Bureau and with startup funding from the Merrill Area Community Foundation, the Lincoln County Barn Quilt project was initiated in 2013. Although any barn in the county may be eligible for participation in the project, the committee felt it was appropriate to begin with farms that have been honored as Century Farms by the Merrill Historical Society. Through this project, people will be able to view our historic agricultural icons in their new role as public art.
The Barn Quilt Committee is currently looking for additional farm families both Century Farm families and others who are interested in being a part of the project. For more information about the Lincoln County Barn Quilt project, visit http://lincoln.uwex.edu/p/lincoln-county-barn-quilt-project/ or contact Debbie Moellendorf at the Lincoln County UW-Extension office at 715-539-0177 or Bea Lebal or Pat Burg at the Merrill Historical Society at 715-536-5652.