Ed & Martha,
RE: loafing sheds
Don't know if you got tons of letters on this one but....
I have always known them as loafing sheds, and in fact I have two of them. I'd be glad to send photos if you want. The name makes perfect sense -- the horses hang out (or loaf) in them when not occupied elsewhere. In my distant pre-western past I had horses in Virginia and North Carolina. I suppose that such structures may have existed there but do not recall ever seeing any. Everybody had barns with stalls.
I am not sure about pole barns - but I always thought that was probably those things with a roof but no sides used for storing hay (it sort of stands on poles).
Suzanne MacDonald
Buena Vista