Teeple Barn, historic structure in the USA
Teeple Barn was a round structure with sixteen sides, built in 1885 by architect W. W. Abell for a dairy farmer. Standing over 85 feet tall and roughly the same in width, it featured a brick floor on a foundation of fieldstone and concrete.
Built in 1885 after the original octagonal plan proved impractical, the sixteen-sided design was chosen instead. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979, remaining one of Illinois' rare round barns until a storm destroyed it in May 2007.
The barn's name comes from the Teeple family who worked the land for over a century. Its round shape was an unusual choice for farming buildings of that era, showing how farmers tried new approaches to improve their daily work.
The site is open to the public year-round with no formal tours required. Located near Randall Road close to the I-90 Tollway, it is easily accessible by car for visitors exploring the area.
The original plan called for an octagonal barn, but available wood lengths forced a sixteen-sided design instead. In 1996, a non-profit group called AgTech raised over 300,000 dollars to restore it before the 2007 storm destroyed the structure.
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