MCCRACKEN FARMS
447 W. Richardson Rd.
Bad Axe, MI 48413
Block: Star of Bethlehem
Block Size: 8'X8'

Our barn is located at 447 W. Richardson Road.  It can be viewed from Barrie Road which is a cross road very near to it. 
The barn sits on land that Hugh McCracken homesteaded back in 1878 and remains in the family today. The barn has a
hip roof and was built in 1912.  The barn has seen many changes take place within its time.  In the beginning it housed
horses, cattle, pigs and chickens.  It has two big sliding doors that open to allow horses to pull a wagon loaded with
loose hay to be pulled up a hill and into the hay loft.  Slings were used to unload the hay that would be lifted off the
wagons with a series of pulleys.  In the 1960’s a Ford 4000 tractor replaced the horses pulling the wagon. Also at that
time we started chopping hay and straw and blowing it into the barn.  It was always jam packed with enough feed for
the winter.  In 1957 Glen McCracken started selling Grade A milk and we did so until 2004.  The barn was equipped with
17 stalls and stanchions and had a loafing area for the over flow of animals.  At one time we had over 100 head of cattle
that called the barn home at the same time.  In 2002 we attached a hoop barn for our cows while still milking in the stanchions.  

The pattern for the quilt block is the Star of Bethlehem and is in honor of all the owners:  Hugh, Thomas, Glen, Mel,
and Alene McCracken (Glen’s wife) who spent many years working in the barn and raising her family.