Projects

The Ma Barker house was moved across Lake Weir on a huge barge from its original location in Ocklawaha to the Carney Island Recreation & Conservation Area in October 2016.

Deciding to preserve the house was an easy decision – it was determining how we could move the house that presented a challenge. Due to the size of the structure, moving it on the local roadways would have had major impacts on the trees which canopy a few of the roads, and would quickly put the project over budget. After exploring every option, we made the decision to float the house across Lake Weir on a series of linked barges.

After strategically prepping, bracing, and lifting the house from its original foundation, the structure was moved down steel plated ramps onto pin barges which had been linked together. Then the makeshift house boat was sailed across lake weir where another steel ramp waited to bring it up from the water and to its new resting place.

The Barker House now sits on Carney Island as a museum for tourists and locals to visit and learn about the Barker family, their history, and how the F.B.I. halted their career of crime.