The south has a history of growing tobacco. To this day, tobacco farmers are found all throughout the southeastern United States. Those of us who have lived through more than a decade or two know how the perspectives have changed. When cigarettes first came on to the American market, they were touted as healthy and robust. These days, the complete opposite has found to be true.
Doctors were seen in cigarette advertisements, public programs on all three channels displayed famous personalities supporting cigarette smoking. Airplanes had smoking sections, as well as restaurants and even hospital waiting rooms. Now, the most shocking advertisements on television are in the business of saving people from starting the addictive habit. One barn owner made his stance clear with a complete idealogical 180.
The Tobacco Barn Turned Anti-Smoking
A farmer named Michael Vaughn grew tobacco for years. The farm has a wooden barn on it that is more of a piece of history rather than a place to store livestock, but it’s current use is even more iconic. The tobacco farmer commissioned a hand painted mural of an anti-smoking ad with federal grants. Now, it’s a home to livestock and a number to help southerners driving by to quit smoking.
In Kentucky, where Vaughn’s barn is, more people smoke than just about anywhere else in the United States. It takes the lives of thousands of people each year, and Vaughn decided it was time to give back. The money that funded his life, fed his family, and assisted him in achieving the American dream was not earned in malice. However, the lives that were taken by tobacco over the years left a weight on Vaughn’s conscience. The ad is a way of taking back what history neglected.
Elephant Barns and Our Message
When it comes to smoking, it’s best to consult your doctor. When it comes to barns, we admire Vaughn’s ability to carry on a tradition of advertisements on barns in a new and modern way. Advertisements on barns is nothing new. In the rural areas, bill boards were scarce. Barns fit the bill, and companies that held customers in rural areas saw them as a marketing fire sale. Barn advertisements were everywhere, and as urbanization makes it’s way even deep into the sticks they’re starting to fade.
The carrying on of this cultural tradition is unique and interesting, and Vaughn should be commended on his inventiveness. Also, the ability to realize his crop may have hurt some people is not his fault. It’s simply admirable he wishes to help the future generations in his rural Kentucky area.
Barns should keep giving back
Elephant Barns and Advertisements
If you’re purchasing a barn in a rural area and need an extra source of income, it may be prudent to look into advertising like Vaughn did. Even if it’s not for a moralistic method, or if it is, it’s an avenue some new farmers may not be aware of. The proposition could be foreign to some of today’s corporations, but it’s certainly possible to win them over with location!
If you’re in the market for a new barn, a metal barn is a far more viable alternative than the historical alternative, advertisements aside. Wooden barns degrade rapidly, and exponentially in comparison to metal barns. Many of our competitors will argue that pole barns are the number one barn configuration in the world, but this is simply untrue. Our patented truss system is state of the art. Call in today to contact a building advisor that will help you start building your dream barn. Or build your own on our online builder. Who knows, if you get an advertiser you might be able cover your costs completely!
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