Barn at Oxford Horse Ranch
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Barn at Oxford Horse Ranch | |
 Oxford Horse Barn in 1986 | |
   | |
| Nearest city | Laramie, Wyoming |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°11′18″N 105°35′32″W / 41.18833°N 105.59222°W |
| Area | Less than 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1887 |
| NRHP reference No. | 86001398[1] |
The Oxford Horse Barn, built in 1887, is located near Laramie, Wyoming in Albany County, Wyoming. It is one of the oldest and largest existing barns in Albany County. The barn in an excellent example of vernacular architecture as influenced by the English cattle and horse ranchers which immigrated to the American West. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[2]
The Oxford horse ranch was one of the earliest in the area, being established in the 1870s by Pete Johnson. The ranch was later sold to two Scottish gentlemen named Whitehouse and Stokes. It was under these owners that the ranch gained international recognitions as breeders of pedigreed horses, at times running up to 3,000 head. The Oxford Horse Barn provides important evidence the transplantation of the English upper class thoroughbred horse culture to the Rocky Mountain west and more specifically, Wyoming. The Oxford horse barn also played an important role in local history. Most notably it is associated with the name of Axel Palmer, who worked at and later became part owner of the then Whitehouse Ranch on which the barn is located. Palmer trained horses and used the barn loft as a kind of obstacle course for breaking teams.[2]
