Peter French's Round Barn???

While I was in Oregon, a friend said, "If you're going home through southeast Oregon, stop and see Peter French's Round Barn." I had been enjoying the scenery and birds at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, when I spotted a sign to Pete French's Round Barn, so I made a detour and I'm glad I did.

Peter French left northern California in 1872, driving 1200 head of shorthorn cattle with the help of a few vaqueros. French eventually became an important cattle baron owning the "P" Ranch. With several thousand head of horses, French had more than 300 colts born each year. He built three Round Barns as places to train and exercise these colts during Oregon's cold winters. Only one of the barns remain.

Placed on higher ground for better drainage, the round barn resembles a very large Chinese umbrella. The conical roof enclosess a 100-ft diameter stone corral and an indoor track. Made from lava stone and juniper trees. Twelve juniper trees that were unusually tall support the roof with the center pole being 35-feet high. It took 50,000 shingles to cover the roof.

In 1897, Peter French was shot and killed by a local homesteader in a land dispute. Thomas and Richard Jenskins donated the Round Barn to the state of Oregon for preservation.

The Jenkins family has also built the Round Barn Visitor Center that mirrors the architecture of the Round Barn. It houses family antiques as well as paintings by local artists and other items for sale. Through the visitors center, the Jenkins offer tours that focus on ranch heritage and on the Steens Mountains. A gourmet lunch comes with the tour.

The Round Barn is located about 50 miles from Burns, Oregon at
51955 Lava Bed Rd. Diamond, OR 97722; 888-493-2420; www.roundbarn.net