Timber frame structure part of Pasto Museum silent auction at Ag Progress Days

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- A unique timber frame structure, built onsite during Penn State's Ag Progress Days, Aug. 12-14, will be included in the Pasto Agricultural Museum's annual silent auction.The large-shed-size building will be constructed using historic methods and traditional tools during the show by a team of craftsmen in a demonstration area near the museum at the top of Main Street on the Ag Progress Days site.The team, led by Rudy Christian, of Burbank, Ohio, will include representatives from the Timber Framers Guild, Friends of Ohio Barns and Preservations Trades Network. In addition to showing timber frame work, the craftsmen will demonstrate the tools and techniques for creating hand-hewn timber, split shake shingles, split rail fencing and hand riven pegs."The craftsmen want to keep the traditional trades alive and useful for generations to come," said Pasto Museum curator Rita Graef. "They believe that the historic buildings are important parts of our cultural landscape. It will be fascinating watching them work."After the show, pegs will be pulled out and the building disassembled so it can be loaded into a small truck for the successful silent auction bidder to transport to his or her site for reassembly.Auction proceeds this year will help the museum complete exhibits that feature its Dairy and Poultry collections. For more information about the silent auction, go to the website.The recently enlarged and renovated Pasto Agricultural Museum will provide visitors with a glimpse into farming's past. With exhibits highlighting the history of agriculture and rural life, the 8,400-square-foot facility showcases an intriguing collection of artifacts.Located on East 10th Street near the top of Main Street on the Ag Progress Days site, the Pasto Museum provides a comprehensive view of the era when energy for work was supplied by the power of humans and domesticated animals.The approximately 1,300 items in the collection are concentrated in the time period between 1775 and 1940, although the assemblage of objects spans 6,000 years, from 4,000 B.C. to the 1940s."Visitors can see and touch tools used in early agriculture and rural life," Graef said. "Our exhibits provide an understanding of developments in ag technology through the 1930s. Folks take away with them an appreciation of a time when energy for work was supplied by humans and animals."Sponsored by Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, Ag Progress Days is held at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs, nine miles southwest of State College on Route 45. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 12, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Aug. 13 and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 14. Admission and parking are free.For more information, visit the Ag Progress Days website. Twitter users can find and share information about the event by using the hashtag #agprogress, and Facebook users can find the event online.