This is one of several absolutely gorgeous white oak mantel beams that we recently pulled from a local barn. The deep wonderful color is completely natural. We sanded up the beam just right, then applied a hard wax oil finish.

The barn was located between Norwood, Minnesota and Bongards, Minnesota. It was on what is known as a “Century Farm.” This is a farm that has been in a family for over 100 years. In the picture, you can see an old colorized photo of the farm, including the barn. This support beam sat on top of posts that then supported the floor joist of an old, 1900s vintage barn. On these support beams were tags to identify which cow belonged in the particular stall. Some families named their cows, other just have them numbers. I laughed when I heard one local farmer call one of his beef cattle, “Hamburger.” One section of this old barn had old log cabin timbers that had been re-used as “sleeper joists.” So these beams were already on their second re-use, now going on their 3rd.

We have similar, longer beams available — up to 8 to 10 feet. We also can cut this one shorter and reduce the price.