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Home > Missouri > Quarry Links and Photographs > Baird thru Butler
Article entitled, “Baird Mountain Quarry, southwestern Missouri,” by Thomas L. Thompson, available in PDF on The Geological Society of America’s web site.
“Bald Mountain Quarries. - Bald Mountain lies to the northwest of Skrainka. The first quarry was the Skrainka & Simpson, which was opened about eleven years ago (circa 1885). It is near the top of the mountain. Other quarrying has been done, mainly on the southwest flank, but no rock has been taken out here for nearly two years. There is but little stripping and the granite is of such character as to make it very desirable block stone. It fractures smoothly and wears well. The product was transferred on a long switch to the Belmont branch of the Iron Mountain railway.”
Locality R (Field Descriptions and Analytical Information)
“Remarks. The samples obtained at this locality were taken from a recently abandoned bluff quarry. (circa 1947)
“Location. In the SW ¼ SE ¼ sec. 19, T. 42 N., R. 6 E., on the west side of Wolf Hollow Road, three-fourths mile north of Barnhart, Jefferson County, Missouri.
“Transportation. The all-weather Wolf Hollow Road serves the site of this abandoned quarry, located on the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway.
“Elevation. The floor of the quarry is about 485 feet above sea level.
“Stratigraphic Position. The base of the section The beds sampled are in the Kimmswick formation of Ordovician age and represent the upper 61 feet of that formation. The Kimmswick formation is approximately 90 to 95 feet thick in this immediate area.
“Samples. Seventeen samples, R-1 to R-17, inclusive, were taken at locality R.
“Geologic Section. The sequence, from top to bottom, is as follows:
14. Surficial material and soil, with slumped beds of Fern Glen formation (Mississippian). Not examined in detail.
13. Sandstone, ferruginous, slumped over the beds below; thickness exposed (not examined in detail) may be as much as 15 to 20 feet. Bushberg formation (Mississippian).
12. Shale, dark gray, weathered to bluish-gray, fissile. Not examined in detail - 22 feet.
11. Shale, dark gray; with dark phosphatic pebbles. Not examined in detail - 1 foot.
10. Shale, dark gray; somewhat limy with starch-like fracture, weathered blue-gray. Not examined in detail - 2 foot.
9. Shale, brown and olive-drab; black pebble conglomerate at base in places; gypsum, limonite, and pyrites in lower 6 inches (base of Maquoketa formation) - 5 ½ feet.
8. Fernvale formation: Limestone, dark bluish-gray, coarsely crystalline and fossiliferous; silicified fossils on upper surface which is coated at places with satin spar ½ to 1 ½ inches thick. Elevation, 544 to 545 feet. Sample R-17 was taken at an elevation of 545 feet - 1 foot.
7. Limestone, brownish-gray, crystalline; highly fossiliferous, in beds 3 to 6 inches thick at places; stylolitic. Elevation, 532 to 544 feet. Samples were taken as follows: Sample R-16 was taken at an elevation of 540 feet; R-15 at 537; and R-14 at 534 feet - 12 feet.
6. Limestone, light gray and some pinkish-gray, crystalline, medium- to coarse-grained; some dark reddish thin bands; stylolitic. Elevation, 525 to 532 feet. Samples were taken as follows: Sample R-13 at an elevation of 531 feet; R-12 at 528 feet; and R-11 at 525 feet - 7 feet.
5. Limestone, brownish-gray, crystalline and fossiliferous. Elevation, 522 to 525 feet. Sample R-10 was taken at an elevation of 522 feet - 3 feet.
4. Limestone, gray; crystalline, chiefly coarsely crystalline; streaked with brownish-gray, highly fossiliferous; some pinkish beds; a few ‘tight’ stylolitic partings; in beds 1 to 2 feet thick. Elevation, 516 to 522 feet. Sample R-9 was taken at an elevation of 520 feet, and R-8 at 517 feet - 6 feet.
3. Limestone, light gray, crystalline; massive beds, with a few indistinct stylolitic bedding planes. Elevation, 505 to 516 feet. Sample R-7 was taken at an elevation of 514 feet; R-6 at 508; and R-5 at 505 feet. (A bench in the quarry at elevation of 516 feet) - 11 feet.
2. Limestone, buff-gray and tan, coarsely crystalline, fucoidal in part; a few lenses of gray, dense to medium-grained limestone are from 1 to 5 inches thick and from 2 to 4 feet long across the face horizontally. Many calcite-filled vugs. Bedding indistinct, but beds appear to be from 8 to 24 inches thick; some slight cross-bedding at places. Distinctly more brownish or cream-colored than the limestone beds above (nos. 3 to 7). This makes the lower face, below the bench in the quarry. Elevation, 485 to 505 feet. Samples were taken as follows; R-4 was taken at an elevation of 504 feet; R-3 at 500 feet; R-2 at 495 feet; and R-1 at 490 feet - 20 feet.
Base of section sampled
Analytical Information on Limestone Samples of Kimmswick Formation At Locality R. The chemical analyses of the 17 samples of the Kimmswick formation at locality R are as follows:
Analyses of Samples at Locality R.
A. Kimmswick limestone in quarry at Locality R, west side of Wolf Hollow Road, three-fourths mile north of Barnhart, Jefferson County, Missouri.
The Building Stones and The Stone Industry (of Bates County, Missouri). - Coal Measure sandstones.
“The Coal Measures furnish an abundance of building material suitable for the local demands. The best quality is found among the sandstones. A stone supposed to be the equivalent of the Warrensburg sandstone occurs in a number of localities, where it may be quarried to advantage.
“Limestones are quarried, locally, in a small way, for building purposes. The sandstones are quarried for building and dimension stones, and, at one locality, about a mile east of Butler, a white sandstone is quarried by the firm of Miller & Son, in a small way, to be used in the production of fire brick.”
Bethany.
“Three limestone quarries, belonging respectively to W. H. Sperry, Gilbert Arney and R. L. Nelson, are operated in the vicinity of Bethany. They are located west and northwest of the city. At the Nelson and Sperry quarries the stripping is so heavy that it all but prohibits their operation. The Arney quarry has not as yet been worked far enough into the hill to have the full thickness of stripping. All the quarries are worked intermittently, supplying only the local demand for stone....”
“This quarry is located one mile northwest of Bethany, in the S.W. ¼ of the N.W. ¼ of sec. 10, T. 63, R. 28, and is owned by Gilbert Arney. It has been opened along the southeast face for 100 feet. The following is a section from top to bottom:
3-6 ft. - Clay and dirt stripping.
1 ft. - Dark gray, fine grained limestone, containing occasional red spots caused by iron oxide. Chert nodules and a few small calcite geodes occur in this bed. Short dry seams are also present.
6 in. - Gray, finely crystalline limestone containing a small amount of iron oxide and chert.
1 ft. 3 in. - Dark gray, finely crystalline, fossiliferous limestone. Bed shows dry seams, nodules of chert, and some iron oxide.
1 ft. 4 in. - Very fossiliferous, gray, crystalline limestone. This bed shows a number of dry seams.
“Two thick beds are quarried below this, but were not exposed when the quarry was visited. The joints are not very prominent. The two most important sets strike N. 20° W. and N. 68° E.
“The quarry has been worked only along the outcrop. The beds are thick and the thin seams of shale which are common in this vicinity do not occur here. Most of the heavy beds show dries which are generally colored red or buff by iron oxide. The stone is quarried by using hand tools, and in this manner the heavier layers are quite difficult to handle. The greater part of the stone from this quarry could be used for heavy constructional work, such as bridge abutments, footing and foundations.”
The Obituary Record: “S. D. Stanley, the monument dealer at Bethany, Mo., was found dead in a well on his shop premises March 10. His hands were wired together and a bag of sand attached to his neck, and it is not known whether he was killed or committed suicide. He was the owner of 4400 acres of land in Fox Creek township besides the Bethany Marble Works. He was prominent in the Masonic order and other lodges, and was 51 years old. He is survived by a widow and four daughters.”
“This quarry, which is owned by R. L. Nelson, is located in the S. ½ of S.W. ¼, sec. 9, T. 63, R. 28 W., about a mile west of the Sperry quarry. It faces the north and has been opened eighty feet east and west. The following section shows the succession of beds from the top to the bottom.
6-10 ft. - Red clay stripping.
6 in. - Fine grained limestone, much broken.
3 ft. - Dark gray shale containing nodules of limestone.
6 in. - Dark gray, fossiliferous crystalline limestone. Has a somewhat mottled appearance due to white spots.
9 in. - Dark gray, fossiliferous crystalline limestone. Has a somewhat mottled appearance due to white spots.
8 in. - Dark gray, fossiliferous limestone. Dry seams occur in this bed.
7 in. - Gray, finely crystalline, very fossiliferous limestone.
12 in. - Similar to bed above. Has iron oxide along the bedding plane.
“There are three prominent sets of joints, which strike N. 42° E., N. 54° E., and N. 57° W.
“The beds separate readily and can be easily worked with plugs and feathers. The stone lies in beds of very convenient thickness for hand quarrying, dresses nicely, and has a very good appearance in a wall. The heavy stripping is troublesome.
“The quarry has been rented in the past to parties desiring a few loads of stone and they have taken it out wherever it was most convenient, without regard to future work. In consequence considerable expense will be necessary to put it in good condition. Had the quarry been opened near the bottom of the hill, the stripping could have been removed with less expense than at present, and the proportion of stripping to the amount of rock quarried would have been correspondingly less.”
“This quarry, owned and operated by W. H. Sperry, is located in the S.E. ¼ of S. E. ¼, Sec. 9, T. 63 N., R. 28 W., about three-fourths of a mile west of Bethany court house. It faces the west and has been opened about 700 feet north and south. The following section shows the succession of beds from the top to the bottom:
5-15 ft. - Gray shale and soil stripping.
1 ft. 7 in. - Heavy bed of dark gray, fossiliferous limestone. Will not stand frost when first quarried.
1 ft. 2 in. - Dark, fine grained, fossiliferous limestone. Will not stand frost.
10 in. - Similar stone.
4 ft 10 in. - Soft, shelly stone. Bed is broken into small pieces but becomes somewhat more solid as it is worked into the hill.
5 ft. - Dark gray, finely crystalline, fossiliferous limestone, consisting of beds from four to eight inches in thickness, separated from one another by wavy bedding planes. The stone is slightly stained by iron oxide.
1 ft. 6 in. - Dark, finely crystalline limestone. Splits into two beds along uneven bedding planes.
1 ft. 10 in. - Dark bluish, fine grained limestone, containing layers of dark flint. Breaks very irregularly on blasting. Splits into four beds. Used for street work.
“The principal joints observed strike N. 45° E. and N. 10° E.
“The lower beds of the quarry have very irregular, waving bedding planes and are mostly separated by very thin layers of clay. The stone in the bottom bed, although very compact, breaks so irregularly upon blasting that it can only be used for street paving and rough rubble work. The four foot ten inch bed disintegrates rapidly when exposed to the atmosphere. It is only used for street paving. The upper portion of the quarry consists of rather thick, solid beds. These should be quarried during the summer months, as they will not withstand the frost until seasoned. Hand tools are used in getting out the stone.”
The Obituary Record: “S. D. Stanley, the monument dealer at Bethany, Mo., was found dead in a well on his shop premises March 10. His hands were wired together and a bag of sand attached to his neck, and it is not known whether he was killed or committed suicide. He was the owner of 4400 acres of land in Fox Creek township besides the Bethany Marble Works. He was prominent in the Masonic order and other lodges, and was 51 years old. He is survived by a widow and four daughters.”
“This quarry, which is owned by J. W. Spratley and operated by Schriber & Sons, located just northeast of the railroad depot. It has a south face about 600 feet long. The stone is obtained mainly from the upper ten feet of the Bethany Falls limestone. The stone in the upper four to six feet is a mottled dark and light gray limestone, which occurs only at the top of this ledge.
“This quarry is equipped with a crushing plant and all of the stone is crushed for macadam and concrete. Plans for enlarging the plant and increasing the output were being made in 1902.”
“North of the Blackwater good quarries have also been opened, and over thirty years ago columns for the court-house in Lexington, Missouri, were cut out. Those columns are still entire, and are discolored only by time.
“The Normal School building at Warrensburg was the first structure of note in which this stone was used, but since then it has been largely shipped to many places, including Saint Joseph, Kansas City, and Saint Louis, Missouri; also Chicago, Illinois, and Lincoln Nebraska.
“In 1871 the quarries were opened, and in 1874 one firm shipped 900 car-loads over the Missouri Pacific railway. A block 20 by 6 by 2 ½ feet was taken out and used in the Chamber of Commerce building at Saint Louis. The rock weighs 140 pounds to a cubic foot when dry, but only from 145 to 150 pounds when first quarried. It forms a large proportion of the face-stone of some Saint Louis dwellings, and it was also used in the Union Depot building at Chicago. It stands the test of time very well. It is not known to have scaled off, but after long exposure it becomes darker on the surface and somewhat stained.”
“This quarry, which is located along the bluff about one mile west of Blackwater, on the Missouri Pacific railroad, is owned by H. Lauterbach and operated by Colyer Bros. of Kansas City. It has been operated each year since it opened in 1891.
“The stone is quarried along the side of the bluff for a distance of about 2,000 feet. The following is a section of the quarry from top to bottom:
10 ft. - Red clay and chert stripping.
10 ft. - Coarsely crystalline, buff limestone containing considerable chert.
25 ft. - Coarsely crystalline, light gray limestone. Upper portion splits into beds from one to two feet in thickness. Contains considerable chert, of which there is a two-foot bed near the middle. Suture joints occur throughout the ledge. Occasional cavities containing zinc and barite have been observed.
20 ft. - Medium grained, crystalline, blue limestone containing many flint nodules and suture joints.
“The entire face is worked, the stone being crushed in a plant situated near the middle of the quarry. The rock is hauled to the crusher in dump carts. The stone is not screened after leaving the crusher, but goes directly to a large storage bin from which it is loaded into cars.
“This quarry is equipped with steam drills, a Gates crusher and other necessary machinery. From 70 to 100 men are employed throughout the year. The plant produces form 650 to 750 yards of crushed stone per day.”
This web site indicates that the historical Jackson Hill Limestone Quarry was located in Bloomsdale, Saint Genevieve County, Missouri. (The exact location is not given.)
Blue Mound - Businesses
Joe Dillard describes the two types of rock quarries in Blue Mound: The WPA quarry in the early 1930s and the commercial quarry created and operated by Merrill M. Green. In the “Business” section of the article, Mr. Dillard states that the last business that was operating in Blue Mound in 2004 was the “rock quarry owned and operated by Hunt Enterprises out of Kansas City, Missouri.”
“This quarry, which is located one mile east of the city, has a face 200 feet long and 8 feet high. The stone is a fine grained, compact, light gray, magnesian limestone, in beds from two to sixteen inches in thickness. It contains small flecks or nodules of iron oxide. The upper layers are broken into small pieces by short vertical joints. The stone is easily quarried, cut and dressed, but apparently does not withstand the weather.”
“This quarry is located near the southeast limits of the city. It has a west face 85 feet long. The principal bed is 32 inches thick and consists of siliceous, magnesian, pitted, limestone. It has a dark gray color, is finely crystalline and contains cavities filled with granular white quartz, which gives the stone a mottled appearance. There is a bedding plane four inches from the top, the remainder being solid. In working this bed, it is usually split into two layers of equal thickness. Cotton rock occurs below this, but it is not quarried. It is overlain with three feet of light gray, fine grained cotton rock. It occurs in layers from two to six inches in thickness and is used only in unexposed portions of the walls. The stone from the thick mottled bed was used in the foundation of the new wing of the Bolivar Southwestern Baptist College.”
“St. Joe Lead Co. In township 37 north, range 4 east, section 23, near Bonne Terre, are several small quarries in limestone. The stone is easily quarried in open cuts on the hill-sides, where the stripping is very light. The strata vary in thickness from six to eighteen inches, and blocks of large area can be obtained. The color of the stone varies from blue to gray, growing lighter as it dries after quarrying. It is dressed with some difficulty, owing to numerous veins of calcspar which it contains. It is used largely in and about Bonne Terre for foundations, edge stones, paving, flagging, etc. The dwelling house of Superintendent Parsons is built of it, and it is there shown to be a very handsome and durable building stone...”
“Boonville Quarry is located on the bluff side of the Missouri river, just above the railroad bridge, and about 12 feet above the ordinary water-line of the river. When the river rises to the level of the quarry operations are necessarily suspended. The bluff rises steeply above the quarry for over 100 feet, so that the quarry cannot advance far inward on account of the rapidly-increasing amount of cap rock. The layers of stone are generally tolerably even, and from 10 to 16 inches in thickness, with occasional partings of calcareous shale. A vertical section of quarry rock 16 feet in thickness is exposed. The strata dip slightly to the west. A little to the east, at the bridge, about 30 feet of gray, cherty limestone are exposed, containing, as far as could be seen, only specimens of an Archinedipora and a turbinated coral. The quarry rock lying above this also contains specimens of Archimedes.”
“R. L. Moore, Marble and Granite, Limestone Bases and Rock Foundations a Specialty. - This business was established here twelve years ago (circa 1879) under the name of Moore & Elliott, who dissolved over one year ago, since which time it has been owned by Mr. Moore. He deals extensively in marble and granite, estimating upon monuments, tablets, curbing and every description of stone work. He has a fine display of monuments and marble work in the show rooms, and carries about $3,000 worth of stock. None but first-class workmen are employed, which is a guarantee that the work cannot be excelled, and at present he gives constant employment to five men. Mr. Moore is also agent of the Missouri Pacific Railroad and Pacific Express Co. He is a native of Missouri, and is a member of the A.F. & A.M. His business for the past year has exceeded any previous year, and extends through Central and Southern Missouri.”
“Booneville, Mo. – R. L. Moore, marble, reported to have given deed of trust of real estate for $1,200.”
See: Booneville, Missouri - R. L. Moore, Marble and Granite above.
The following information was taken from the table entitled, “Table IV. Tables indicating the Amount and Kinds of Rock in the Different States”: The Russell Quarry, Boonville, Cooper County, Limestone/Limestone, color: dark drab; quarry opened in 1856.
“This quarry is located two miles east of the city and consists of two openings, one on each side of the Chicago and Alton railroad. The one south of the railroad was opened about thirty-five years ago, but has not been operated for ten or fifteen years. The one north of the tracks was opened about two years ago and is the only one now operated.
“It has a face about 60 feet long and 32 feet high. The stone occurs in thick massive beds as shown by the following section from the top to the bottom:
2 ft. - Clay stripping.
4 ft. - Consists of three beds of hard, buff colored limestone. Waste.
15 ft. - Fine grained, mottled limestone. This stone has large, irregular, yellowish spots and the upper part contains many small cavities. The lower five feet is separated from the upper portion by a suture joint. The stone below this joint is fine grained, white limestone, showing no iron oxide and very few cavities.
12 ft. - Bluish gray mottled limestone, containing occasional cavities. The mottling is due to weathering, chiefly along the stratification planes. The stone contains dark spots parallel to the bedding. Small crystals of pyrite occur throughout this bed.
“The major joints are from 15 to 25 feet apart, permitting the quarrying of stone of any convenient size. The major joints strike N. 80° W.; the minor joints N. 55° E. The stone for a distance of six to eight inches, on either side of the joints, has a buff color.
“The upper ten feet contains one bedding plane about two feet from the top. The stone has a somewhat mottled blue and gray color when freshly quarried. After exposure to the atmosphere, the dark spots, which are probably caused by ferrous iron, change to brown through oxidation. The iron is most abundant near the top of the ledge. The stone contains many small cavities, from one-eighth to one inch in diameter, especially in the upper half of the ledge. These and the mottled color prevent the use of it for anything but rough constructional work. The stone is suitable for bridge abutments and other purposes for which large blocks are required and a uniform color is not essential.
“The lower five feet of the upper ledge is a finely crystalline, magnesian limestone, having a very uniform light gray color. It contains very little iron and the small cavities which are present are not sufficiently abundant to injure its appearance. This bed can be split along the stratification planes into blocks of almost any thickness. Upon exposure, the color changes to a light brownish yellow, not as dark as that of the beds above and below. This stone is the best in the quarry and may be used for ashler blocks, caps, sills and other parts of buildings.
“The twelve-foot ledge is a solid bed of magnesian limestone. It has a roughly banded buff and grayish blue color. The streaks of buff show along the stratification planers of the stone which has been exposed to the weather. In the lower part of the bed, the buff colored streaks do not occur, the stone exhibiting simply light and dark blue streaks. Occasional cavities, somewhat larger than those in the fifteen-foot ledge, occur in this bed. Some of the cavities contain calcite. This stone is stronger and more compact than that in the fifteen-foot ledge and is somewhat more difficult to cut and dress. For this reason it has not been quarried very extensively. It is suitable for most purposes for which dimensional stone is required.
“All the stone breaks with a smooth, even fracture and can be worked to advantage with plugs and feathers. At the time the quarry was examined, the stone from the upper ledge was being broken into one-foot cubical blocks, to be used in short columns. These blocks are broken so smoothly with plugs and feathers that very little dressing is required.
“The opening on the south side of the Chicago and Alton railroad contains stone which, in general, is very similar to that in the opening just described. The chief difference is in the greater abundance of bedding planes and the presence of several inclined joints. The following section shows the character of the beds from the top to the bottom.
2 ft. - Broken stone stripping.
12 ft. - Fine grained, buff colored magnesian limestone. Contains numerous cavities.
10 ft. - Fine grained, dark gray limestone. Contains cavities varying in size from one-fourth to one inch in diameter. This ledge contains bedding planes which split the stone into layers from two to six inches in thickness.
14 ft. - Blue limestone, containing dark and light spots, which give it a mottled appearance. Contains many calcite geodes and occasional flat lenses of chert. The principal bedding plane occurs two feet from the bottom.
“The major joints strike N. 80° W. The minor joint strike N. 40 ° E. and N. 20° E. One of the major joints is filled with a thin layer of iron oxide probably an alteration product of iron sulphide. On both sides of the joints, the stone has been weathered to a buff color. The inclined joints mentioned above, although not numerous, occasion considerable waste.
“Although this quarry is situated not over 200 yards from the tracks of the Chicago and Alton railroad, it is not provided with a spur or side track. Any stone which is shipped must be hauled two and a half miles to the depot. This greatly handicaps the development of the quarry.
“The abutments of the Chicago and Alton railroad bridge, near the quarries were constructed out of this stone. After twenty-five years exposure to the atmosphere, these abutments show no sign of wear. The edges and corners of the blocks are clean cut and sharp and the faces still retain clear and distinct the chisel marks.
Laboratory Examination.
Chemical Tests. - The following is a chemical analysis of the white limestone from this quarry:
Insoluble - 13.99
Fe2 O3, A12 O3 - 1.62
Ca Co3 - 49.77
Mg Co3 - 34.45
Total - 99.84
Physical Tests. - Two-inch cubes from this quarry were tested in the laboratory with the following results:
Specific Gravity - 2.76
Porosity - 10.62 per cent.
Ratio of Absorption - 4.365
Weight per cubic foot - 154.3 pounds.
Transverse strength - 2023.32 lbs. per sq. in.
Tensile strength - 598. lbs. per sq. in.
Crushing strength
{ 8,881.6 lbs. per sq. in. on bed.
{ 6.019 lbs. per sq. in. on edge.
Crushing strength of samples subjected to freezing test - 11074 lbs. per sq. in.
“In the freezing test of the second set of samples in which the crushing strength of the fresh stone was 6,019 pounds per square inch, the specimens cracked parallel to the bedding planes and their crushing strength could not be determined. In the first set the crushing strength of the frozen samples was 2,192.4 pounds per square inch higher than that of the fresh samples.”
“Messrs. J. W. Gibeaut and J. L. Amick lease quarry rights upon land owned by Mrs. Luetts Bush north of Breckenridge. Three openings have been worked on the east side of the road. The one farthest north is three-fourths of a mile from town. It has been opened about one hundred feet east and west along the south side of a hill. The following strata are exposed in the quarry from top to bottom:
2-3 ft. - Soil and broken stone stripping.
1 ft. 4 in. - Hard, crystalline, solid limestone, having a light bluish color. Bed contains pockets of bitumen. Upper portion buff colored.
1 ft. 8 in. - Gray, very porous, heavy bedded limestone. Will split with plugs and feathers but shows no bedding plane along which it will cap readily.
2 ft. 6 in. - Bed has capping seams 12, 18 and 24 inches from the bottom. Stone is porous and has a gray color.
1 ft. 8 in. - Bed caps ten inches from bottom along a stylolitic bedding plane. The bottom ten inches is very good gray stone similar to the 12 inch bed below.
1 ft. - Light gray, porous limestone, spotted in places with iron oxide. Bed works well.
1 ft. 7 in. - Gray, fine grained, slightly porous limestone. Has a bluish colored streak, two or more inches in thickness in the middle of the bed. Two stylolites occur near the top. There is an occasional colored dry seam. Can be split near the middle.
“The stone is heavy bedded and works well. The 12-inch bed works better than most of the others. The beds gradually increase in porosity as the top of the quarry is approached, with the exception of the 16-inch bed which is very compact. The stone from all the beds, except the lowest, will stand frost. The major joints strike N. 40° W. The beds have a dip of 2° in the same direction.
Plate XXXIX. Fig. 1. Crushing plant, Breckenridge Stone Co., Breckenridge, Mo.
Plate XXXIX. Fig. 2. Portion of quarry of the Breckenridge Stone Co., Breckenridge, Mo. “The second opening is forty rods south of the one described above. This opening faces the west and extends about eighty feet north and south. The face is about eight feet high. The stone is very porous and contains pulverulent iron oxide, which fills small cavities in the stone. This washing out upon exposure to the atmosphere. The stone in the upper three feet of the quarry is very soft and porous, containing cavities which are often one-fourth of a inch wide by two or more inches long. Although the stone is soft, it is very hard to work. It does not spall readily, where exposed to the weather it shows a rather smooth surface along the outcrops. The stone from this opening does not work with the ease or regularity of that from the other two.
“The largest opening lies south of the last and about one-half of a mile north of town. It faces the west and has been opened 150 feet north and south. The following is a description of the beds at this place from top to bottom:
2 ft. - Soil stripping.
6 in. - Hard, gray, crystalline limestone, containing occasional cavities.
3 ft. - Gray, porous, semi-crystalline soft limestone. Bed contains considerable pulverulent iron oxide in spots and streaks very similar to the upper layer, in the smaller opening. Bed splits well but spalls hard.
6 in. - Gray porous stone. Shows spots of oxide of iron.
9 in. - Very porous, gray limestone. Bed contains much iron oxide and has a somewhat sandy texture.
1 ft. 2 in. - Gray, porous limestone. Shows blotches of iron oxide.
9 in. Similar stone.
10 in. - Gray, semi-crystalline limestone. Bed contains small spots of iron oxide.
1 ft. - Crystalline, bluish gray, compact limestone. Will not stand the frost.
“The upper layers of this quarry contain a large amount of iron oxide in irregular cavities imparting to the stone a slight brownish color when quarried. Upon weathering the iron oxide washes out and leaves the surface somewhat pitted. This is especially the case with the three-foot bed. The stone becomes lighter in color as the iron is washed away. These cavities and spots become smaller and less frequent towards the base of the quarry, the lower ledge being quite free from them. Only hand tools, including a hand derrick, are used for moving the stone. The joints are prominent and strike N. 45° E. The beds dip about 3° to the north.
“These quarries can produce a very durable building stone and one which is especially well adapted for bridge abutments. The stone can be split into rectangular blocks of any required dimensions and with the exception of one bed is not affected by frost. The lower beds are of a pleasing gray color and contain very little iron oxide. The stone in the upper beds contains too much iron oxide to give it a pleasing appearance.
“These quarries have been opened only recently. A large quarry just south of the opening last described was opened in 1891 by Mr. Gibeaut. This was worked for some time, but has not been active for a number of years. The stone is very similar to that which occurs in the quarries described.
“The stone has been used locally for foundation work and has also been shipped to St. Joseph.
“In 1903, since this quarry was visited, the Breckenridge Stone Company was organized to operate the quarry opened by Mr. Gibeaut. This company is incorporated for $10,000 and the following are the officers: O. J. Chapman, president; J. W. Rozzle, secretary; J. W. Gibeaut, superintendent. A side track has been built connecting the quarry with the Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad and a crushing plant has been installed. The company intends to operate it much more extensively than it has been in the past.
“Laboratory Examination.
“Chemical Analysis. - The following chemical analysis shows the stone to be almost pure calcium carbonate, there being little over 3 per cent. of impurities:
Insoluble - 2.93
Fe2 O3, Al2 O3 -.54
CaO - 54.22
MgO -.22
CO2 - 42.58
Total - 100.49
“Physical Tests. - The limestone has the following physical properties:
Specific Gravity - 2.454
Porosity - 8.185 per cent.
Ratio of Absorption - 3.944
Weight per cubic foot - 141.2 pounds.
“The tensile strength of the stone is 565 pounds per square inch; the crushing strength averages 6,944.5 pounds per square inch on bed and 8,035.5 pounds per square inch on edge. Two samples were tested on bed and two on edge. One of the samples on bed gave a very low test, bringing down the average. The highest test was 8,274 pounds per square inch. The transverse strength is 1,341.46 pounds per square inch.
“Samples which were subjected to the freezing and thawing test lost.078 per cent. in weight. The crushing strength of the sample which was subjected to the freezing test was 8,163 pounds per square inch. This test shows that the stone is not affected materially by alternate freezing and thawing.”
“Arrowhead Manufacturing Company. This plant is located in the NW. ¼ NW. ¼ sec. 24, T. 39 N., R. 10 W., in Brickeys Hollow, about one-fourth mile southwest of the town of Brickeys on the main line of the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway, with which the plant is connected by a spur.
“The stone was formerly obtained from an open quarry, the Kimmswick limestone being utilized. At this place it is light gray to light buff crystalline limestone, marked by many stylolites. Chert nodules are common near the top. It is overlain by shales and red-gray limestones of the Fern Glen formation, which are not suited for the manufacture of lime, and as the thickness of this formation increased open quarry work was abandoned and the stone recovered by underground methods. The headings are in the upper part of the Kimmswick limestone and are driven from the face, twenty-two feet high, the workings in the main being to the southeast. Thirty-foot pillars are left to support the roof, which in general appears to be solid. In one place it is cut by a vertical joint through which much debris has come down onto the floor of the tunnel, during recent rains.
“The stone is hauled from the underground workings over an elevated track to the top of the kilns, the elevation of which is the same as the floor of the tunnels.
“The plant is equipped with four vertical stack kilns, and has a capacity of 36 tons per day. The kilns are fired by hand with coal. The product is a high-grade strong lime, darker colored than the lime burned at Ste. Genevieve, and for some purposes is in greater demand than lime made from the Spergen formation.”
See: “Brickeys (north of), Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri - the Cliffdale Quarrying and Manufacturing Company Quarry (locally known as Carron’s Quarry)” below.
“Cliffdale Quarrying and Manufacturing Company. This quarry, locally known as Carron’s Quarry, the name of the operator, is located one-half mile north of Brickeys in sec. 13, T. 39 N., R. 7 E. The quarry on the north side of the valley was formerly worked as an open quarry, but in recent years all work has been done by tunnelling (sic). The formations exposed are given below:
Section Measured in Carron’s Quarry, North of Brickeys.
Burlington formation:
Limestone, gray, thin-bedded, with nodules, lenses and beds of chert. Top of formation not exposed - 30 (feet thick).
Fern Glen formation:
Limestone, thin-bedded, gray, green and red with shaly limestones, and red shales - 20 (feet thick).
Kimmswick formation:
Limestone, brown to light brownish gray, darker colored and softer near weathered face. Occasional lenses of chert in very upper part. Base not exposed - 50 (feet thick).
“The stone quarried is from the Kimmswick formation. As shown in the tunnels, it is brown in color near the old quarry face, but becomes light colored as the workings extend into the hill. The underground workings extend back into the hill for 300 feet. The room and pillar method is used, the pillars being 20 feet in diameter on the floor, but 25 feet under the roof. The headings are 30 feet high, the top being about three feet below the Kimmswick-Fern Glen contact. The dark colored rock is broken up into blocks suited for riprap and general construction work on Mississippi River. The stone is hauled by truck and dumped directly on barges. A part of the output is used for flux in the manufacture of glass at the plant in Crystal City, Missouri. For this purpose the lightest color stone is used. It is hauled in trucks to a loading platform located on the St. Louis-San Francisco Railway.”
“...I presume that there is nothing to see at the site, except the Bridgeton Landfill itself - an example of reuse of a mine site.
“The Bridgeton Landfill was formerly the Vigus North Quarry - one of the largest aggregate quarries in Missouri. Rock ( St. Louis Limestone and limestone from the Salem Formation) was quarried from the site from ca 1900. Beginning in the early-1970s, the site was used as a solid waste landfill.”
“...I have no information on the accessibility of the Arrowhead Quarry.
“The Arrowhead Quarry of Arrowhead Manufacturing Company was located in Brickeys Hollow, on the St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad, adjacent to the Mississippi River. The quarry was originally developed as a pit. By 1928, the stone (Kimmswick Limestone) was quarried underground. The headings were 22’ high, leaving pillars 30’ in diameter. The stone was calcined in four coal-fired vertical stack kilns with a capacity of 36 tons per day. Apparently at some later date the property was taken over by the Menefee Crushed stone Company.
“The Weller Marble Company Quarry, about a mile north, produced dimension limestone (marble). The underground spaces covered an area of about 5 acres. Openings are directly on the railroad right-of-way.”
“...“The Arrowhead Quarry of Arrowhead Manufacturing Company was located in Brickeys Hollow, on the St. Louis & San Francisco Railroad, adjacent to the Mississippi River....”
“The Weller Marble Company Quarry, about a mile north, produced dimension limestone (marble). The underground spaces covered an area of about 5 acres. Openings are directly on the railroad right-of-way.”
“Brookfield.
“Three small quarries are operated at Brookfield, known respectively as the Bottomly, McClintock and Morris. They are located east and southeast of the city. The stone in all these quarries is obtained from the same ledge and, in general, the character of the stone is the same.”
“This quarry, which is located two miles east of town, in the S.W. ¼ of N.W. ¼, sec. 4, T. 57, R. 19 W., is owned and operated by J. C. Bottomly. The beds in which it has been opened are near the base of the north side of the hill. It is operated only when there is a local demand for stone. When inspected, the quarry was entirely covered with sand and soil which had washed into it during the spring. The stone is removed with a hand derrick and worked entirely with hand tools.
“The stone is used for foundations, coursing, caps and sills. The rough stone is sold for one dollar and fifty cents per perch in Brookfield. The output in 1900 was 300 perch and in 1901, 200 perch. This quarry was not operated during 1903.”
“This quarry, which is located two and one-half miles southeast of Brookfield, in the S.W. ¼, sec. 9, T. 57, R. 19 W., is owned by James McClintock and is operated by John and Ed. McClintock. It has been worked intermittently since 1870. During this period the ledge has been quarried nearly one-fourth of a mile north and south along the outcrop, and into the hill from 50 to 100 feet.
“The quarry face consists of one ledge of limestone varying in thickness from twenty-two to twenty-six inches. This ledge consists of two beds, the upper being from fourteen to eighteen inches and the lower eight inches thick. The two beds are very much alike and consist of dark blue, compact, fine grained, fossiliferous limestone. This stone works well with plugs and feathers, breaking with a very smooth, straight fracture. It works nicely into steps, sills, cap and coursing. The major joints strike N. 45° E. The limestone ledge is overlain with eleven feet of blue shale at the place where the quarry is being developed. This ledge is also underlain with shale. Only about twenty feet of the face of the quarry is now being worked. A hand derrick is used for moving the stone.”
“This quarry is located two miles east of town. It is owned by Madison Morris and operated by J. W. Morris. It is situated in a valley and consists of an irregular shallow opening covering about three-fourths of an acre. It is so situated that it fills with water, seriously hindering quarrying operations. The same ledge of limestone is worked as at the previously described quarries (the Bottomly quarry and the McClintock quarry). The major joints strike N. 45° E. and are from two to four feet apart, greatly facilitating the quarrying. The annual output during the last two years has been about 300 perch.”
“ Buck Mountain Quarries. - The work on Buck mountain has been confined principally to the southern end, in the northern part of section 5 (Tp. 33 N., R. VI E.) Development began a dozen years ago (circa 1884). Later, much quarrying was undertaken and soon a large number of paving blocks were taken out and shipped. The rock has proved to be one of the best grades of granite in Missouri. From Syenite southward to the Buck Mountain area the quality is found to become better and better. The stone is easily dressed, receives a high polish and contains no deleterious constituents. A little quarrying is carried on here from time to time but extensive work has not been prosecuted for the past few years. Over 250,000 blocks were gotten out from the several openings.”
“Graham Quarry is near the Hurst and has been worked for paving blocks.”
“Hurst Quarry is located on the headwaters of Pine creek (Tp. 33 N., R. VI E., Sec. 32, NW. qr). Three or four openings have been worked and perhaps 26,000 blocks taken out.”
“Vandergriff Quarry. - The two Vandergriff openings are close together and lie about half a mile north of the Billington. They were opened about the same time and 30,000 blocks made.”
Section south of Butler.
“Day. T. J.: - Mr. Day has a quarry in sandstone, on the bluff of a creek about three and one-half miles south of Butler. The section at this quarry is as follows: -
1. Soil and decomposing sandstone - 5 feet.
2. Sandstone, cross-bedded, containing numerous streaks of bituminous matter. (These seem to be the remains of some bed of coal destroyed at no great distance, and re-deposited here with the sand.) - 6 feet.
3. Sandstone, a solid, unbroken bed, varying, from the top downwards, from a light grey to a dark bluish color. It sometimes contains little cavities, partially filled with a reddish substance, which probably contains organic remains - 13 feet.
Stone soft, but does not ‘wash.’
“Stone is quarried by handpicks. It is very soft and friable when quarried, and can be crumbled between the fingers, but it soon hardens on exposure to the air. It dresses easily, and will admit of considerable carving. It is claimed that it does not ‘wash,’ and that it resists weathering influences very well. Its greatest defect is that it contains, occasionally, concretions or crystals of iron ore which oxidize and stain the stone, and which spoil the chisels of the workmen who dress it. This sandstone is used for bases to monuments and tombstones, and for building purposes.”
“Butler.
“Two quarries are operated in the vicinity of Butler. One is a small limestone quarry owned and operated by J. T. Day.* All the stone from both quarries is used locally.”
(For description of this quarry see under Sandstone Quarries.)
Butler (south of), Missouri - Day Sandstone Quarry (Sandstone) (The following information is from The Quarrying Industry of Missouri, by E. R. Buckley, Director and State Geologist, and H. A. Buehler, Missouri Bureau of Geology and Mines Vol. II, 2nd Series, 1904.)
“This quarry, owned and operated by J. T. Day, is located four miles south of Butler, in the S.W. ¼ of sec. 4, T. 39, R. 31 W. It has been worked intermittently since 1882. It consists of a single heavy bed of fine grained, micaceous sandstone, from 16 to 18 feet in thickness, which has been worked 160 feet along the north side of a hill. The quarry is being worked to the east, and the operating face extends 20 feet north and south at the east end of the opening. The stone in the upper six to eight feet is quite soft and is used only for foundations. It contains considerable brown oxide of iron, in the form of small specks, giving the stone a light buff color. The lower ten feet has a bluish gray color and contains occasional small nodules of iron sulphide which decomposes into iron oxide and eventually weathers out, leaving cavities. The lower three to five feet is practically free from iron sulphide. Parallel to the bed the stone contains thin leaf-like deposits of carbonaceous matter. When the stone is cut normal to the bed, these either do not show or appear simply as dark pencil marks. A piece of coal was observed imbedded in the sandstone near the top of the present working face.
“The stone from this quarry is used almost exclusively for monument bases, although it is suitable for caps, sills and coursing. The massive character of the stone permits the quarrying of blocks of any desired dimensions. The quarrying and dressing are both done by hand. The rock is quite soft when first quarried, but hardens upon exposure.
“The stratification planes dip to the southwest. In lifting the rock from the west to the east, as practiced at present, it breaks upward along the bedding. If the quarry were opened at the north and worked to the south or west, the stone would split downward instead of upward. This could be done easily, as the stone is exposed for a considerable distance along the side of the hill.
“Hand channeling is practiced in getting out the blocks. The stone is channeled with long sharp picks to the required size and then lifted with plugs and feathers. This is the only quarry in the State where hand channeling is practiced.”
“This quarry is located in the southwestern part of the city. The face extends north and south from Ft. Scott street to Dakota street and has a depth of from six to eight feet. The stone belongs to the Lower Coal Measures.
“The following section shows the character of the stone now being quarried at the north end:
1 to 3 ft. - Stripping.
7 ft. - Dark and light gray, fine grained fossiliferous limestone. Splits into beds from two to eight inches in thickness. Bedding planes rough and wavy. The uppermost eight inch bed is solid fine grained limestone. The remainder is shelly and suitable only for macadam or very rough foundations.
1 ft 1 in. - Bluish, fine grained limestone. Weathered to a buff color along the bedding planes. This is the best stone in the quarry.
1 ft. 8 in. - Fine grained, compact, blue limestone. Splits into two ten inch layers. Now forms the floor to most of the quarry.
“The major joints strike N. 50° E.
“The stone is used for curbing, foundations and sidewalks. A small amount of the stone has been broken by hand and used to macadamize the city streets.
“This quarry must be abandoned soon unless additional land is acquired.”
Commercial use of material within this site is strictly prohibited. It is not to be captured, reworked, and placed inside another web site. © . All rights reserved. Peggy B. and George (Pat) Perazzo.
