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LuCile Ivey-Norton of Charlotte took the photo below of the Lil' Red Barn near Anderson in November 2006.
LuCile writes: "During the 1940s, visiting my grandparents, who were sharecroppers, taught me so much about life and living. The beauty of the Broad King Farm, including the Lil' Red Barn, mesmerized me as a child. In 2007, I took my mother (age 97) back to see where she lived, and married my father. The storage places remain on the King's farmland just as I remember them. I am so thankful to Hilton and the other Kings for allowing me to take pictures. Several family members live on this farm. Across the road, hundreds of acres used for planting corn during the 1940s are now being replaced by big luxury homes. The mental beauty remains."
The Lil Red Barn
By: LuCile Ivey-Norton
Let me not forget the Lil Red Barn
That somberly sits on the old King Farm
Aged with dignity over 70 so it seems
With shadows of croppers amid its beams
Its stage stands tall among stained sheds
That housed water and sweet potato beds,
In defiance, it remains with stubborn-like will,
Stuffed with corn and other winter's yields.
An old storage tower that peaks toward the sky
Intently eyes the barn that croppers rely
An iron wash pot engaging the ground
Awaiting the seasons to just turn around.
Across the country road tall corn plants remain
Browning with the times that chill each flame
Leaning yellow grains on the cobs to pluck
While the cows of the fields hunger for husks.
The signs of the times wear that old house
As the dreams and memories, delight even Foust
The hide-and-go-seek a play well known
Gives solace to those on that one-time throne.
The roving seasons of spring, summer and fall
Unlock the sadness that the coldness calls
And bring in the beauty that charms the plains
To arouse one's dream and restores its flame.
Springtime clovers blanket the land's floor
The daffodils bow at the old sheds door
The nearby brook quietly rippling along
Surrounds my vision of this beautiful home.
Now close your eyes and sing me to sleep
Then pray the Lord my house we should keep
If I should expire before I 'wake,
Save the Lil Red Barn for goodness sake.
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