Undaunted and committed, a local crew of carpenters set out, hammers in hand, to restore the iconic Red Barn which has served five generations of Genesee Valley ranchers. Feather River Land Trust members and volunteers worked to raise the funding for the project. As one of Plumas County's few remaining 19th century barns, the historical significance of this effort has resonated well beyond Genesee Valley. The recent completion of this enormous undertaking by this crew of local craftsman and volunteers is a tribute to their skills and dedication to preserving both a traditional lifestyle and a historic working landscape. As the classic timber-frame structure has regained its rustic dignity, it has renewed community pride in the 880 acre ranch acquired by the Feather River Land Trust in December 2006.

Of all the Land Trust's acquisitions, the Heart K Ranch is the most beloved. When the ranch was threatened with subdivision, FRLT moved to put bridge-loan funding in place to buy the time to raise money to pay for the ranch. Stretched along the banks of Indian Creek, the ranch is home to deer and black bears, river otters, mountain lions and golden eagles. It is also part of a 150-year history of farmers and ranchers in Indian Valley and the sensitive stewardship of Maidu Indians before them.

The barn restoration began just as the original construction must have: with nearby trees. Local loggers felled them, Pew Forest Products hauled them and David Schramel milled them into boards and beams at his Indian Valley Lumber Company in Taylorsville. Jim Webster and Chris Murray helped design the restoration and Scott Stirling coordinated a team of volunteers that included Mike Banchio, Wayne Cartwright, Bruce Livingston, Eric Kindseth, Ken Fye, Will Lombardi, Frank Davis, Jeff Glover, Bill Battagin, and other professional carpenters. They shored up foundation walls, replaced beams and patched the roof, logging over 400 hours of skilled labor and raw brute strength.

More than a structure that can withstand decades of blizzards and gales, the restored barn represents the promise that drives the Feather River Land Trust. The locally based not-for-profit group formed in 2000 is dedicated to conserving and managing land in the Feather River region, and to protecting its environmental and cultural values. The volunteers who spent many weekends repairing the Red Barn are part of a continuum of commitment to the land that has nurtured its residents for millennia. In its mission to preserve these and other lands, this, too, is a tradition the Feather River Land Trust is dedicated to protecting.

Feather River Land Trust