Artisans at the Dahmen Barn (Fence of 1,000 Wheels)

The story

In 1935, this was simply a working dairy barn standing against the wind on the edge of Uniontown. The transformation began decades later when local resident Steve Dahmen started collecting abandoned farm wheels. For roughly thirty years, Dahmen dragged home discarded iron from around the Palouse, welding each piece onto the perimeter line surrounding the old timber structure until the property was entirely enclosed by a dense web of rusted metal.

What you're standing in front of isn't a neat row of identical wagon rims. Dahmen created a genuine folk-art environment built from more than a thousand distinct circular relics of local labor: heavy steam-era threshing machine wheels, iron gears, bicycle rims, tractor components, and baby-carriage casters, all linked hub-to-rim. Set against the soft, endless silt curves of the surrounding wheat country, the fence acts as a sprawling, skeletal museum of Inland Northwest agricultural machinery.

The barn itself got a second life when the property was donated to a local non-profit community group. Today, the renovated 1935 timber interior houses working studio spaces, rotating exhibition galleries, and a shop featuring regional craftspeople. But while the indoor galleries keep regular business hours, Dahmen’s iron perimeter belongs entirely to the outdoor elements, standing raw and open to anyone driving through Uniontown.