Weddingbee boards

I have seen posts regarding other brides looking for a barn venue to hold their wedding ceremony/reception.  On the other posts there doesn't seem to be any conclusion to this.  I have seen all the "commercial" barns where you can rent but that is not what I am looking for.  I'm looking for George and Ester (names of owners do not have to match ;-)) that have a barn on their property that they don't use anymore.  My fiance and I are willing to dig in and clean it up if need be.  We also are willing to provide event insurance so everyone is covered.  Although our guests and I will be very respectful and considerate to the property and the owners we want to make sure they feel comfortable renting out to strangers.  I want the barn location because I want everyone to feel comfortable and laid back at my wedding.  I also want to bring the food I would like and the beverages we would like to our own wedding and not have to be put into a box of a certain caterer, etc.  Please help make my dream wedding come true!  We are looking for a barn within an hour and a half of the Monticello/Big Lake area of Minnesota

there are the VFW locations... i know of one in cottage grove, and one in uptown..

it may be similar to what you are looking for, they allow your own caterer or you can bring your own food in.

i believe rental is $600

hope this helps :)

Here's one in Belle Plaine, might be worth checking out:

http://www.rubiesandrust.com/

Have you heard of Bruentrup Heritage Farm in Maplewood? It's owned by the city of Maplewood and run by the Maplewood Historical Society and is a big, red, historic dairy barn. You can use any caterer you want and any licensed beverage provider and you don't need to muck out the stalls or anything, as it's no longer in use. It's not super close to Monticello but might be worth looking at anyway. My fiance and I are getting married there in October.

http://www.maplewoodhistoricalsociety.org/