DIETERLE'S CORNCRIB
DIETERLE'S CORNCRIB
Webster Township Historic Park, Michigan
This project is a tribute to my dear friend Richard V.A. Dieterle (2012), founder of the Ann Arbor bluegrass band, The RFD Boys. He was a farmer, a physician, an Ann Arbor Township trustee, and consummate musician.
A corncrib is common to midwest American farms. Some are double cribbed allowing the center for storing a wagon. The Webster Township Historical Park, north of Ann Arbor, showcases their original township hall, a one-room schoolhouse, a blacksmith shop, and the old hardware store relocated from around the township, and became the site of Dieterle's Corncrib.
I designed and sited this small building for staged entertainment held at summer and fall festivals, and to compliment the other historic, rural buildings of the park. The simple functionality, the deeply shaded stage and the gaps between wood slats drawing cool breezes make for an appropriate and comfortable venue for bluegrass and like performances. The proscenium is flanked by pairs of sliding barn doors. The stage thrusts into the lawn with steps to either side. The corncribs provide “stage left” and “stage right” space for actors entering. The wonderful chalkboard font signage is a fitting design by Maria Ribas.
Consulting Architect: Hopkins Burns Design Studio
Construction by Gary Koch
PROJECT FEATURES
- Galvanized steel roofing and white stained cedar slats reflect solar heat
- The stage duplicates the proportions of The Ark in Ann Arbor - music/performance advice by RFD Boy Willard Spenser
- Douglas fir flooring provides a non-warping, smooth and nail-able floor for stage sets
- My landscape plan located maple trees arched around the audience lawn for future shade
