Book provides shed-load of history

A new book, Tobacco Sheds: Vanishing Treasures in the Connecticut River Valley, by Dale Cahill and Darcy Cahill, catalogs some of the beautiful tobacco-farm structures that had not been lost at the time their photographs were taken.

“In recent years, over 1,000 tobacco sheds have disappeared from the ‘Tobacco Valley,'” says a promotional note from Schiffer Publishing.

“This important book systematically catalogs tobacco sheds from Putney, Vermont, to Portland, Connecticut, a span of just over 100 miles.

“The photographs capture the beauty of these unique farm buildings and serve as a valuable record for these endangered barns.

“The text offers the agricultural history of each town, helping to connect sheds to their own unique region of New England.

“In addition, the book reinforces the need for preserving one of New England’s most unusual farm structures.

“Many sheds in the Connecticut River Valley are still used to dry tobacco leaves that will wrap some of the world’s most expensive cigars, but, sadly, some are being left to slowly deteriorate over time or are being torn down to make way for development. ‘This book will be treasured by cigar smokers and architectural historians and preservationists alike.”

Tobacco Sheds, which is in a 6-inch by 9-inch, soft-cover format, has 196 illustrations on 160 pages. ISBN13: 9780764342097; price $16.99.