County of barn: St. Charles County
Location of barn: High St., Mt. Pleasant Winery, Augusta
reBuilt: 1975
Marker erected by: Mount Pleasant Winery
Marker Text:
MULE BARN
Before the widespread use of tractors, all heavy vineyard work was done by mules. Intelligent, strong and sure-footed, mules were ideal for vineyard work since they had little difficulty cultivating the steep hillsides and rugged terrains where grapes grow best. Almost all vineyards in those days used the famous Missouri Mules, considered to be the finest of their type. Old long necked Missouri wine bottles, used for giving the mules a drink in the field and nicknamed ""Mule-Slackers" can still be found sitting on shelves in many dusty old barns. The mule barn which stood on this site was disassembled and then totally rebuilt in 1975 in order to extend the wine cellars under the barn.