NEW SCOTLAND, N.Y. — You've heard the one about the chicken crossing the road? How about the 118-year-old barn?
It happened Tuesday morning on Route 85A in New Scotland. One of the biggest historic structures in Albany County, the 118-year-old Hilton Barn finally has a new home. Work crews moved it across the street to avoid a development project on its old lot.
It took a little more than an hour just to get the 120-foot barn from one shoulder of the road to the other. It will now be settled next to the Albany County Rail Trail. There are various ideas to turn it into a coffee shop or a gift shop.
The project is far from over. Crews will need to build a new foundation for the barn sometime this spring.
The barn-moving project was the main draw on Tuesday, though. A hundred or so curious onlookers showed up to watch something they called a once-in-a-lifetime event.
"I've been in this area all my life, so I know the barn," said Sue Sheridan, who rode her bike to the work site. "And I've never seen a barn move, except to fall down!"
Others appreciated the historical preservation.
"Just the fact that they saved it meant a lot to me," said Scott Frush, who was working on a project nearby and paused to watch the event. "I like staying attached to where we came from. Where we're going doesn't interest me as much as where we've been."
Line workers from various telephone and cable companies had to remove wires from telephone poles to move the barn, then replaced them afterwards. Route 85A was closed for about four hours Tuesday as a result.
The plan eventually is to develop the Hilton Barn into some sort of trail-side tourist attraction.