The Blue Ball Barn

The Blue Ball Barn began as part of a property whose farmhouse, now gone, was once the Blue Ball Tavern, named for a blue wooden ball raised to signal passing stagecoach drivers that passengers were waiting. The later dairy and barn took their name from the tavern. In 1914, wealthy businessman Alfred I. duPont built the carefully crafted dairy barn and milk house to supply his nearby Nemours Estate. Later leased to tenants, Blue Ball Farm remained a family operation until 1977. After being deserted and nearly lost, the sturdy old barn was given new public uses as a visitor and conference center, home to the Delaware Folk Art Collection, a historical exhibit about the barn, and a gallery for local contemporary artists.

Delaware · United States