Larson's Sweet Corn~Barn Quilt Trail, New Milford, CT

LARSON BARN ‍

This massive English-style bank barn built by Frank Larson in 1900 served one of the valley’s largest dairy operations. Larson, a native of Sweden, grew corn and tobacco along with maintaining a large dairy herd. The Larson family adapted to changing times in local agriculture for almost a century, surviving into the 1990s on the strength of their famous sweet corn, which they started selling in 1957 at their Route 7 farm stand. It is commemorated in the quilt block’s ear of corn design. Artifacts found during construction of the high school suggest that Native Americans occupied this area up to 8,000 years ago. The Larson barn has been listed on Connecticut’s State Register of Historic Places since 2006.

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‍The New Milford Barn Quilt Trail consists of 19 colorful quilt patterns hand-painted on large weather-resistant blocks and hung on antique and vintage barns and historical buildings around our town. It honors our rich agricultural history, the exciting resurgence of family farms in New Milford today and the American tradition of quilt-making. It is the first barn quilt trail established in Connecticut. Already, over 40 U.S. states, including New Hampshire and New York, boast quilt trails in a rapidly expanding movement that began in Ohio in 2001. Get in your car or jump on your bike and use any mobile device to access this site as you visit these barn quilt block sites. Please use caution as you drive, bike or walk along the country roads of the barn quilt trail. Remember that the quilt blocks are displayed on what is often private property and can be viewed only from public roadsides. Responsibility for any accidents while observing the quilt blocks rests entirely with the viewer.

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