History of
The Barn
The Barn at Winthrop, also known as the Winthrop Barn Theatre, is a hallmark of our beloved community. Since 2000, The Barn has been buzzing with life – devoted to its mission of bringing people together in the spirit of community. Rooted in its origins as a hub for local theatre, today The Barn is the backdrop for weddings and quinceañeras, graduation ceremonies and proms, holiday parties and fundraisers, and more. Learn more about The Barn’s history in our community.
The story of Winthrop begins at The Barn.
In 2000, Kay and John Sullivan were young parents with a big dream. They wanted to build a thriving, walkable small town where deep connections and community flourish. They purchased 154 acres on Bloomingdale Avenue that was previously the old Hobbs dairy farm.
The land was a perfect, nearly blank canvas for their dreams of community, now called Winthrop. But their canvas had two structures on it – two dilapidated, old barns. One was an outdoor pole barn where the cows previously rested, and the other was the former hay barn that stored the hay. Kay and John’s first task was to decide: What do we do with the old barns?
The old hay barn was barely standing. It had pictures of cows painted on the outside, and was in rough shape. Many others would have just knocked the structure down. But Kay and John had another idea.
The original hay barn when Kay and John Sullivan first bought it in 2000. See the painted cows on the outside!
There were many cows still living at Winthrop when Kay and John purchased it. Peek inside the original hay barn and spot a cow inside. You can even see the sky – because the barn had no roof!
Kay and John's first step was to restore the barn by giving it a roof and doors.
The community responds.
Kay and John knew that true community happens when people gather together – to celebrate, to mourn, to grow, to enjoy the arts, and more. At the time, local community was stunted because there simply weren’t enough spaces for people to gather.
Kay and John wanted the first building at Winthrop to help solve this problem. So, they knew just what to do and got to work. They completely restored the hay barn and transformed it into a beautiful event space to bolster community.
The Barn was born! The community responded immediately. In the first 365 days alone, The Barn was the home for just over 300 events!
Kay and John originally restored the barn with a facade made of red brick. But after they saw the brick on the building, they both agreed that it just wasn't the right fit for the barn. So they immediately built a new facade made of white marble. The original red brick is still underneath the marble!
Kay and John both have a deep love of incorporating historic and antique pieces in their designs. Both the front door of The Barn as well as the grand, side doorway onto The Courtyard are reclaimed, historic doors. The front doors were salvaged from the very first skyscraper in Tampa – the Lykes Building tower (now called Park Tower). The side doorway was salvaged from a historic bank in Tampa.
The area outside of the hay barn was known as "the troughs" where cows used to walk and feed. Kay and John preserved this area by transforming it into today’s Courtyard. To this day, you can still see the hoof-marks where the cows used to walk through The Courtyard.
The Barn’s origins as a theatre.
At the time, the Sullivans’ oldest daughter Katharine was studying theatre. She insisted that The Barn would make a perfect black box theatre, and encouraged her parents to turn it into a theatre venue. So they did! Because of that, in the early 2000s, The Barn was an active venue for regional artists. We’re proud that The Barn launched the careers of many local artists who are now Broadway and other award-winning performers.
Singer-songwriter Carrie Manolakos performs a concert at The Barn in 2022.
To draw attention to The Barn, they turned the barn's silo into a sign! This silo still decorates the property today.
Broadway performer Dan'yelle Williamson Brown returned to The Barn in January 2016 to perform for the launch of Winthrop Arts, Winthrop's arts non-profit for kids. Dan'yelle performed at The Barn dozens of time as a teenager in the area, helping to launch her career before she went to Broadway!
The mission of The Barn stays the same: to provide a beautiful setting for community to thrive.
Today, The Barn at Winthrop is not only a home for theatrical events. It is also the home for a wide range of community and family events – from weddings and quinceañeras, graduation ceremonies and proms, church meetings and conferences, wellness retreats and political gatherings, holiday parties and fundraisers, and more.
But the mission of The Barn stays the same: to provide a beautiful setting for community to thrive.
Today, the Sullivans’ dream has come true: Winthrop is a thriving, walkable community with hundreds of businesses, families, and more. The Barn at Winthrop literally made the dream of Winthrop come to life. And so many important events in the life of our community have taken place in The Barn.
