barn raising

noun

(in rural areas) a party, usually providing food, drink, etc., for the purpose of assisting a neighbor to put up a new barn.

Origin of barn raising

An Americanism dating back to 1855–60

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Five years from spring, other Amish folk would come to homestead—what a barn-raising they'd have!
Blind Man's Lantern | Allen Kim Lang
Come a muster or a barn raising or an election or anything, Harve Allen fought somebody—and licked him.
Back Home | Irvin S. Cobb
It can be made as much of a social institution as corn husking and barn raising were formerly.
Our Schools in War Time—and After | Arthur Davis Dean
I have never seen a prettier barn-raising than that, and I have fiddled at a many since then.
Rosin the Beau | Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards
It was like pioneer days, when "barn-raising" and "bees" made life worth while in a wild, stern land.
Wayside Courtships | Hamlin Garland

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