A 1979 pro-street Corvette, BMX racing bikes, tools, and chickens were among the losses when a historic barn on Little York Road in the Town of Carlisle burned Thursday.
But horses and ponies that were outside when the fully-involved blaze was called in just before 3pm at the Larry Daly farm were led to safety by neighbors and police.
Dozens of firefighters from the Carlisle, Cobleskill, Sharon Springs, and Richmondville Fire Departments fought the blaze at the scene with Central Bridge and other departments on standby.
Schoharie County Sheriff's Deputies and State Police were also on scene as were the County FASTeam, fire coordinators, and EMS crews.
Volunteers used tankers to shuttle water from a pond on Trillium Lane across Route 145 from Little York Road as traffic was re-routed from both the Sharon Springs and Lawyersville ends.
Neighbors said there was no sign of a fire as late as 2pm, but an hour later the barn was engulfed in flames and smoke was visible for miles away.
Firefighters said they were initially dispatched with the report that there could be livestock in the barn; it's uncertain how many chickens were lost in the fire.
Firefighters said the fire may have been electrical and could have been caused by a heat lamp used for the chickens.
The barn had a metal roof, which made getting at the fire difficult, but firefighters said by the time the blaze was spotted, the hay mow was all but gone.
Even Thursday's rain, which started about an hour after firefighters arrived, was too little, too late, they said.
"We're losing them left and right," Cobleskill Fire Department volunteer John Copeland said.
"Big barns-and churches-they're the worst. There's just so much room for oxygen. And that's what you need for a fire: Fuel and oxygen."