HalsteadTimber & Barn Works Reserve a seat

Waitsfield, Vermont

Frames raised
by hand.
Barns brought back.

Halstead Timber & Barn Works cuts, joins and raises timber frames in the Mad River Valley — and repairs the old barns that have stood here far longer than any of us.

See how we work
KING POST TIE BEAM BRACE TYPICAL BENT
Bent 01 — a three-bay frame, chalked out on the layout floor

New frames, historic repairs, and a workshop where the joinery is taught one chisel at a time. Take a bench and learn to cut the joint yourself, or come for the barn tour weekend and walk the frames we have raised.

Reserve a workshop seat Barn tour weekend

What we do

Cut, join,
raise, repair

Every frame starts flat on the floor: laid out from a chalk line, scribed, cut and pegged. Nothing goes up until it has been together once at the bench.

OAK PEG MORTISE TENON
Mortise & tenon — drawbored and pegged
  • 01

    Timber frame barn raising

    New frames for barns, garages and outbuildings, cut in the shop and raised bent by bent with a crew and a gin pole.

  • 02

    Historic barn restoration

    Sagging plates, rotted sills, broken rafters. We read the frame first, then repair what is there and match the old work.

  • 03

    Custom frame design

    Bring a sketch, a footprint, or a barn you want to echo. We draw the frame, size the timbers and cut the joinery.

Workshops

Take a bench,
cut a joint

Hands-on workshops in the Halstead shop. You lay the joint out from a chalk line, cut it yourself and fit it — then stand the frame up with the crew.

Groups are kept small so there is a bench, a set of chisels and a mallet for everyone.

01

Frame layout & joinery

Start at the bench and work a joint end to end.

Lay out a mortise and tenon from a chalk line, cut it by hand and peg it home.
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02

Restoration & repair

Work on an old frame with the restoration crew.

Read rot and sag, splice new oak to old and match the original work.
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03

Raising day

Join the crew for a bent and put the frame in the air.

Braces, pegs and a gin pole — a frame that stands up on its own.
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Adults at sawhorses cutting joinery by hand on a timber beam in a workshop
At the bench — laying out and cutting a mortise by hand

Once a year

The barn tour weekend

Once a year the shop opens up and a route of restored barns around the Mad River Valley opens with it. Walk the frames, watch a raising and see the joinery up close.

12345 TOUR ROUTE
Plan — barn tour route, five stops
  1. 01The shop floor — layout lines, cut lists and a frame chalked out full size.
  2. 02A raising demonstration, with a bent pegged together as it goes up.
  3. 03A route of restored barns around the Mad River Valley, open for the weekend.
  4. 04The joinery bench — try a chisel, cut a peg, see how the joints come together.
  5. 05Time with the crew and the drawings behind the frames on the route.

Route and dates are posted here as the weekend approaches

Reserve

Save yourself
a bench

Workshop seats are limited. Tell us which track you want and we will hold a bench, a set of chisels and a place at the raising.

Workshop tracks Barn tour weekend
LocationWaitsfield, Vermont
ServicesBarn raising · Restoration · Frame design
WorkshopsLayout · Joinery · Raising
ToursAnnual barn tour weekend
Interior of a restored timber frame barn with hand-cut joinery and hay doors
A restored frame, pegged and standing