Machine Shed

Machine sheds housed farm equipment. Most were rectangular, some quite elongated. They could be enclosed, with large gable ends or eaves side doors to admit machinery; or they might be open on one eave side and enclosed on the other three sides. Often a machine shed was combined with a corn crib, so that a drive-through roofed-over space was created between two corn cribs. Machine sheds were most commonly built of light frame, covered over with horizontal or vertical board. They were sited nearer the barn than the house. They date from the late 19th century to the mid-twentieth century.

Machine sheds signify the rising importance of mechanized agriculture. They are a common sight on historic farms throughout the state, but are bigger, more numerous, and earlier in places where farming had a strong history of significant mechanization. Many, if not most, townships in the North and West Branch and Central Limestone Valleys Historic Agricultural Regions, for example, fit this category. In these regions, mechanization was promoted by the proximity of local implement manufactories (or ironworks in the case of Central Limestone Valleys), and the competition for labor from nearby mining and industrial towns. It should be noted that mechanization changed farm labor patterns in the following ways: by increasing labor productivity; by redistributing the gender division of work (in particular, probably by reducing the amount of field work done by women); and by eliminating some communally shared work.

Image of a wagon shed with a coal bin extension in Delaware Township, Northumberland County
Machine shed with coal bin extension, Northumberland County, c. 1950.

Machine shed and corn crib combination, Columbia County
Machine shed and corn crib combination, Columbia County, c.1945.

Machine shed with integral corn crib and shed roof extension, Lower Windsor Townhsip, York County, c. 1950
Machine shed with integral corn crib and shed roof extension,
Lower Windsor Township, York County, c. 1950. (Site 133-LW-003)

Machine shed with two integral corn cribs and shed roof extension, North Anville Township, Lebanon County, c. 1900-1930
Machine shed with two integral corn cribs and shed roof extension,
North Annville Township, Lebanon County, c. 1900-1930. (Site 075-NA-001)

Machine shed, North Cornwall Township, Lebanon County, c. 1950-70
Machine shed, North Cornwall Township, Lebanon County, c. 1950-70. (Site 075-NC-002)

Machine shed in a pole barn, Delmar Township, Tioga County, c. 1950-80
Machine shed in a pole barn, Delmar Township, Tioga County, c. 1950-80. (Site 117-DE-006)