The Barn: History

A HISTORY
of

WHAT IS THE BARN?
The Barn is a house in Norwich, Vermont.
Over the past three years, it has been "under the control" of graduate students in the Computer Science Department at Dartmouth College, and has become a central gathering place for activities of all kinds.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE BARN
In the spring of 1996, six graduate students were looking for a place to live. They'd considered several options, none of which was particularly appealing. On the very day that they were going to make a commitment to their top choice, a new ad for a 5-bedroom house appeared on Dartmouth's Rental Housing list, so they went to Norwich to check it out. There was no decision to be made; the huge, rustic, barn-shaped structure blew away the competition. The lease was signed later that day.

Over the next three years, housemates came and went, but the core of the group--made up of computer scientists--remained. They were eager to share their incredible find and were soon hosting all kinds of events: dinner parties, barbecues, movie showings, and more. The spacious "Barn," as they called it, was an ideal place to have guests. As time went by, they discovered more and more about their house--it's features, peculiarities, and shortcomings. The seasons changed, and they suffered the trials and tribulations of heating with wood, driving on brutal road conditions, and dealing with insects and a leaky roof. But through it all, the group persevered and thrived in the quirky house, shrugging off the difficulties and focussing on the advantages.

Finally, nearly three years after the lease was originally signed, the group began to realize that it was time for change. Activity at the Barn began to wind down, and it was hard to think that this place, which was once such a mainstay in the lives of so many, would be gone. All of its customizations would be undone, its walls stripped bare of any personalization. The Barn would no longer be their shrine, but once again just a house. In no time at all, of course, it would come back to life, taking on another form with its new inhabitants. Its incarnation as the Barn, though gone forever, will be forgotten by none.

TIMELINE

April 1996 The house is discovered. A group of six Dartmouth College graduate students is looking for a place to live together. They spot an ad on the Dartmouth Rental Housing list, so they go check it out. They're floored by the vast living space and quirky design. The lease is signed and the deposit paid later that day. The six students are Aaron Domina, Anna Poplawski, BJ Premore, Fred Henle, Jamie Ford, and Mark Montague. All are computer science students except for Aaron, who studies pharmacology.

June 14th, 1996 BJ moves in. With the help of Travis, his brother, BJ moves into the empty building. They sleep on the floor upstairs.

June 15th, 1996 Fred, Jamie, Mark, Anna and Aaron move in. All but Aaron share a moving truck and the house begins to fill up. Anna moves in, but won't live at the house until after summer.

late June, 1996 Kirk moves in. Kirk Montague, Mark's brother, joins the group for the summer.

September, 1996 Anna returns, Kirk moves out. Anna returns from her summer internship to join the house, which has by now been dubbed "The Barn" by Fred. Kirk heads back off to college at Oberlin.

September 5th, 1996 BarnNet is born. Three computers are now connected into a network.

September 9th, 1996 The Barn movie series kicks off. We showed our first movie of the series, Fletch.

October, 1996 Aaron moves out. He headed down the road to Wilder.

November, 1996 Yoo Rey moves in. Yoo Rey Yom, a student in the Master of Arts and Liberal Studies Progrem at Dartmouth, took Aaron's place.

January, 1997 Yoo Rey moves out. It was too hard to get to town from here in the winter without a car, so Yoo Rey headed for Hanover.

March, 1997 Mark moves out, Garrett moves in.Mark needed to save some money, so moved back home (St. Johnsbury) for a while. Garrett James, an undergraduate CS major at Dartmouth, moved in. Garrett had no classes left and needed a place to stay until graduation.

April 12th, 1997 Beer and Food and Fire. The Barn's first big party.

June, 1997 Garrett moves out, Mark moves back in. St. J was a little too inconvenient, so Mark returned. Garrett graduated and got a job in the real world.

July 5th, 1997 The original Barn-B-Q. No one can remember if this was dubbed Barn-B-Q I, or if it was the May 24th, 1998 event which received that title. Whether with or without the "I", this was definitely the original Barn-B-Q.

September 5th/6th, 1997 The Barn One Year Anniversary Movie Marathon and Jamboree. Celebrating the one year anniversary of the movie series. We showed four movies between 9pm and 5am, and over twenty people joined us.

January 10th, 1998 The Marvelous Fubbcah. The Barn's second big party.

March 20th, 1998 The last showing in the Barn movie series. We showed Stealing Beauty. The series had been losing momentum, and finally we decided to bring it to completion.

May 24th, 1998 Barn-B-Q I? There's some debate as to whether this was called Barn-B-Q I, or if it was just an unnamed Barn-B-Q. Who cares, really? "Come play volleyball in the Holey Meadow, enjoy a challenging game of Lumpy Lawn Bocce, and cook your dinner in the Concave Grilling Oddity," announced the invitation.

late May, 1998 BJ moves out, Tyson moves in. BJ was going to be gone for the summer, and was also looking for a little more privacy than the Barn afforded. He was still a frequent visitor even after leaving. Tyson Crist, a visiting law student, took his place.

June, 1998 Anna moves out, Jen moves in. Anna sought housing that was closer to school. Jennifer Jameson is a friend of Fred's, and a med student doing a rotation in the Upper Valley.

mid-June, 1998 Michael moves in. Michael Bahl was a visiting computer science student.

late June, 1998 Michael moves out. Michael wasn't so keen on the bug situation.

end of June, 1998 Jen moves out. She completed her rotation in the Upper Valley.

July 4th, 1998 Barn-B-Q II. The second annual Fourth of July weekend Barn-B-Q.

July 1998 Mark (K.) moves in. Mark Krenitsky, who works for Geographic Data Technoloy in Lebanon, took Michael's place as soon as the opening was announced. He'd slept in his car the night before!

July 29th, 1998 Dinner party! A farewell to Tyson, and a welcome to Mark K.

late July, 1998 Tyson moves out. Tyson's internship was over, so he headed back to Ohio State University.

September 3th, 1998 Sherri's pot-luck dinner. Sherri Geimer, who lived here before any of us moved in, sponsored a pot-luck dinner. Lots of people and lots of great food.

September 6th, 1998 Barn-B-Q III.

early September, 1998 The Annas move in, Igor moves in. Anna Tolstaia and Anna Vichniakova, two Dartmouth MALS students, move their stuff into The Tower. However, they head out on vacation right away and Igor Budantsev, a fellow student of theirs from the MALS Program, takes their place temporarily while searching for his own place.

mid-September, 1998 Mark (M.) moves out, the Annas return and Igor moves out, Dave and Dave move in. Mark finds a housesitting arrangement before his upcoming wedding in November. The Annas are back from vacation and Igor has found permanent housing. Dave Isecke and Dave Wagner are new CS grad students, arriving for the fall term.

October 1998 Mark (K.) moves out. Mark had only been staying at the Barn as a temporary arrangement, and finally found housing elsewhere.

December 1998 The Annas move out. They didn't have cars, so they found more suitable housing closer to campus.

January 1999 Brian moves in. Brian West is a Thayer student at Dartmouth.

May 22nd, 1999 Barn-B-Q IV: The Barncooling. The final event at the Barn.

June 14th, 1999. Brian and Dave (I.) move out. The lease expires for the last time. Fred and Jamie get a one month extension. Dave (W.) also decides to stay for a little longer before completely moving out.

July 14th, 1999 Fred, Jamie and Dave (W.) move out. The last of us move on to new arrangements.

April 1996	The house is discovered. A group of six Dartmouth College graduate students is looking for a place to live together. They spot an ad on the Dartmouth Rental Housing list, so they go check it out. They're floored by the vast living space and quirky design. The lease is signed and the deposit paid later that day. The six students are Aaron Domina, Anna Poplawski, BJ Premore, Fred Henle, Jamie Ford, and Mark Montague. All are computer science students except for Aaron, who studies pharmacology.
June 14th, 1996	BJ moves in. With the help of Travis, his brother, BJ moves into the empty building. They sleep on the floor upstairs.
June 15th, 1996	Fred, Jamie, Mark, Anna and Aaron move in. All but Aaron share a moving truck and the house begins to fill up. Anna moves in, but won't live at the house until after summer.
late June, 1996	Kirk moves in. Kirk Montague, Mark's brother, joins the group for the summer.
September, 1996	Anna returns, Kirk moves out. Anna returns from her summer internship to join the house, which has by now been dubbed "The Barn" by Fred. Kirk heads back off to college at Oberlin.
September 5th, 1996	BarnNet is born. Three computers are now connected into a network.
September 9th, 1996	The Barn movie series kicks off. We showed our first movie of the series, Fletch.
October, 1996	Aaron moves out. He headed down the road to Wilder.
November, 1996	Yoo Rey moves in. Yoo Rey Yom, a student in the Master of Arts and Liberal Studies Progrem at Dartmouth, took Aaron's place.
January, 1997	Yoo Rey moves out. It was too hard to get to town from here in the winter without a car, so Yoo Rey headed for Hanover.
March, 1997	Mark moves out, Garrett moves in.Mark needed to save some money, so moved back home (St. Johnsbury) for a while. Garrett James, an undergraduate CS major at Dartmouth, moved in. Garrett had no classes left and needed a place to stay until graduation.
April 12th, 1997	Beer and Food and Fire. The Barn's first big party.
June, 1997	Garrett moves out, Mark moves back in. St. J was a little too inconvenient, so Mark returned. Garrett graduated and got a job in the real world.
July 5th, 1997	The original Barn-B-Q. No one can remember if this was dubbed Barn-B-Q I, or if it was the May 24th, 1998 event which received that title. Whether with or without the "I", this was definitely the original Barn-B-Q.
September 5th/6th, 1997	The Barn One Year Anniversary Movie Marathon and Jamboree. Celebrating the one year anniversary of the movie series. We showed four movies between 9pm and 5am, and over twenty people joined us.
January 10th, 1998	The Marvelous Fubbcah. The Barn's second big party.
March 20th, 1998	The last showing in the Barn movie series. We showed Stealing Beauty. The series had been losing momentum, and finally we decided to bring it to completion.
May 24th, 1998	Barn-B-Q I? There's some debate as to whether this was called Barn-B-Q I, or if it was just an unnamed Barn-B-Q. Who cares, really? "Come play volleyball in the Holey Meadow, enjoy a challenging game of Lumpy Lawn Bocce, and cook your dinner in the Concave Grilling Oddity," announced the invitation.
late May, 1998	BJ moves out, Tyson moves in. BJ was going to be gone for the summer, and was also looking for a little more privacy than the Barn afforded. He was still a frequent visitor even after leaving. Tyson Crist, a visiting law student, took his place.
June, 1998	Anna moves out, Jen moves in. Anna sought housing that was closer to school. Jennifer Jameson is a friend of Fred's, and a med student doing a rotation in the Upper Valley.
mid-June, 1998	Michael moves in. Michael Bahl was a visiting computer science student.
late June, 1998	Michael moves out. Michael wasn't so keen on the bug situation.
end of June, 1998	Jen moves out. She completed her rotation in the Upper Valley.
July 4th, 1998	Barn-B-Q II. The second annual Fourth of July weekend Barn-B-Q.
July 1998	Mark (K.) moves in. Mark Krenitsky, who works for Geographic Data Technoloy in Lebanon, took Michael's place as soon as the opening was announced. He'd slept in his car the night before!
July 29th, 1998	Dinner party! A farewell to Tyson, and a welcome to Mark K.
late July, 1998	Tyson moves out. Tyson's internship was over, so he headed back to Ohio State University.
September 3th, 1998	Sherri's pot-luck dinner. Sherri Geimer, who lived here before any of us moved in, sponsored a pot-luck dinner. Lots of people and lots of great food.
September 6th, 1998	Barn-B-Q III.
early September, 1998	The Annas move in, Igor moves in. Anna Tolstaia and Anna Vichniakova, two Dartmouth MALS students, move their stuff into The Tower. However, they head out on vacation right away and Igor Budantsev, a fellow student of theirs from the MALS Program, takes their place temporarily while searching for his own place.
mid-September, 1998	Mark (M.) moves out, the Annas return and Igor moves out, Dave and Dave move in. Mark finds a housesitting arrangement before his upcoming wedding in November. The Annas are back from vacation and Igor has found permanent housing. Dave Isecke and Dave Wagner are new CS grad students, arriving for the fall term.
October 1998	Mark (K.) moves out. Mark had only been staying at the Barn as a temporary arrangement, and finally found housing elsewhere.
December 1998	The Annas move out. They didn't have cars, so they found more suitable housing closer to campus.
January 1999	Brian moves in. Brian West is a Thayer student at Dartmouth.
May 22nd, 1999	Barn-B-Q IV: The Barncooling. The final event at the Barn.
June 14th, 1999.	Brian and Dave (I.) move out. The lease expires for the last time. Fred and Jamie get a one month extension. Dave (W.) also decides to stay for a little longer before completely moving out.
July 14th, 1999	Fred, Jamie and Dave (W.) move out. The last of us move on to new arrangements.