The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-11-06
TWO STORY PLANT
HOUSES POULTRY FLOCK
OF WILLIAM STEERS
lspecial 70 rhe paIlad.uml

GREEN'S FORK, Ind, Nov. ga
TWO story poultry house, with art glass
windows and ventilation provided b !,
venetian blinds, will convince the
casual visitor to the William Steers
poultry plant In Green's Fork, that h.,
has found another rich man who is
playing at farming with no regard for
the cost. AS a matter Of fact, the
building, which In addition to its other
advantages has a frame of 10 by 10
inch tmbers, really costs but little
more than the old one which has less
than half the capacity. The cost of
the construction Is due to Mr.. Steer s
care in buying material, the windows,
blinds and much of the lumber, being
bargains. Framing timbers and 900
feet of clear poplar siding, which was
used as flooring, were taken from an
old barn, bought for slight sum,
which its owner could not use and had
intended destroying.
With the, new building, which is
efficiently arranged for ease in caring
for the flock, much work will be elm
mated and Mr.. Steers expects to be
able to run flock of 300 in the upper
floor and three smaller flocks in the
three divisions of the lower story
The building lacks only nine square
feet on the lower, and 36 square feet
on the second floor, of providing q
900 square foot floor space in each
story.
Sealed In Winter.
Set on heavy concrete piers, the
large building occupies a prominent
position on the property in the rear
of the Steers residence. A clear space
of about Is inches under the building
will provide shade in summer, and in
winter will be sealed by easily remov-
able boards. A large part of the
southern front is taken up by will
dows, while four long windows be-
meath the roosts along the north side
on each floor, give plenty of light
for the scratching floor.
Communication between the two
floors instead of by stairs, is by two
inclined planes, which enable the
chickens to walk up easily from the
lower to the upper floor. This stair
way" is placed at the west end, and
it's lower end only wastes" nine
square feet of the lower floor space,
tho rest of the construction being cut
out to give more scratching space.
Storage Bin For Feed.
On the upper floor, the space over
the lower plane, which is next the
wall, is utilized as a storage bin for
feed, with a bin floor, sloping with
the slope of the plane, and insuring
complete emptying of the bin. An up
per door at the front end of the bin al
lows easy filling and a lower door per-
mits of taking feed out for the chick
ems in the upper story. A chute from
the lower end of the bin leads to the
lower story.
The lower story has an especially
designed floor planned for warmth in
winter. The poplar siding mentioned
before. was laid as foundation, heavy
roofing paper Tapped with wide
margin, laid next and over it, the
matched flooring, giving an alright,
double floor.
The roosts are of half rounded two
inch lumber, laid on notched stand
ards. They are not fastened to the
standards, nor are the standars fast
ened to the dropping board. so that all
can be taken apart in a few minutes |
for cleaning, or disinfection, and the |
board also can be left absolutely clear
for cleaning.
Nests Are Dark
Beneath the front edge of the roosts
are the laying nests, closed by hing
ed door in front. and open at the rear,
thus providing the darkness the hens
like, with ease of gathering the eggs
through the door. Here again, the
loose assembly plan has been used, a
few minutes work serving at any
time to take all the nest construction
out for inspection and cleaning.
Self feeders and waterers are used,
set on platform with a sufficient clear
ance so that no scratching room is
sacrificed.
The lower story is divided into three |
divisions in which different breeds
may be kept. There are 800 carefully |
selected White Leghorns on the upper |
floor, while 40 Plymouth Rocks are
headed by cockerels of Thompson |
breeding. secured from Mrs Lewis |
Kinsey. There are 40 large Buff |
Orpingtons in another division
Mr.. Steers poultry is all early de-
veloped, winter laying stock, and he |
confidently expects the same good lay
ing records this year that he had last, |
with possibly some increase, and much |
easier work in caring for them, by the /
use OF the new building.