I'm not sure why, but I've always been fascinated by old barn doors. There's something almost mystical about the grain of the old wood, the rust of the joints and locks and the reflections of the window glass.

Here's our latest barn door find, the one on the side of an old barn near Lincolnshire, Ill., northwest of the Chicago.

The entire farmstead--or what's left of it--is below.

I'm always on the lookout for old barns to photograph, so if you know of any, send me a note, OK?

The suburban sprawl has eaten up most of the farms northwest of Chicago. But here and there,  you can still find vestiges of the area's agricultural past. 
We found this one in Lake County near Lincolnshire. This tattered barn and silos stand near a huge high school and subdivisions with large, fancy homes.
It is doubtful that moms in their mini-vans driving to soccer games or teenagers heading to school are aware of the history that this farm, and others like it, recall.