The historic Maasdam Barns at the Evergreen Ridge Stock Farm are a significant illustration of an early 20th-century draft-horse breeding business. From 1910 until 1938 award-winning Percheron draft horses were raised and sold by J. G. Maasdam in these barns.

"Jefferson County is one of the great original horse markets of the country and several thousand head of horses have been sold here annually. Several firms of horse importers make their headquarters here and always have stock for sale." (Quoted from the Good Roads Guide to Iowa - 1912).

The Maasdam Barns Development Project will develop a tourist, recreation and education center on-site. The project will showcase pre-industrial-revolution agriculture and highlight the achievements of the Louden and Turney companies, the largest local manufacturers during that era and national contributors to pre-industrial and industrial agriculture.

Both of the 1910 barns were apparently designed by the Louden barn design division for J. G. Maasdam. The earlier 1906 barn was built for Ellsworth Turney, before he sold the farmstead to J. G. Maasdam.

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