CHINCOTEAGUE ISLAND, Va. — A historic landmark was destroyed in a late-night fire in Chincoteague.
Firefighters were called to Ridge Road just before 11 p.m. on Wednesday. They arrived to find the iconic Misty barn at the Beebe Ranch engulfed in flames.
According to the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department, all four horses, a goat, and a cat were able to get out of the barn safely and have been accounted for.
However, the structure is a complete loss. Two neighboring homes were also damaged by the intensity of the fire.
The barn was named for Misty, a Chincoteague pony owned by the Beebe family. Misty and the family became famous with the publication of a young-adult novel "Misty of Chincoteague" by Marguerite Henry in 1947. The book was later adapted into a movie.
"Our hearts go out to the two neighbors who have some damage to their homes and to the Beebe Family," the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Department said in a Facebook post. "To some, it was just an old barn, to us, it is where our history lived and breathed."