(From a quick read of Wikipedia) Ferric Oxide (Red) paint is very cheap, and provides very good protection for the wood—also, due to the similar color of wood under, doesn’t look so bad when it needs a new paint job.
@Adirondackwannabe Indeed! I hadn’t put it together that, of course, what diary farmers had a lot of was milk, lime, and iron, so of course they’d paint their barns with it.
Yeah Paint was a luxury way back when. I live not far from a hamlet called White Store. Back in time, it was so unusual for anyone to afford paint that the hamlet became known for its “White Store”. See more goofy knowledge.