List of Quarries in Vermont & Quarry
Links, Photographs and Articles

• Dummerston, Windham County, Vermont - the Bailey Granite Prospects (from The Commercial Granites of New England, Bulletin 738, by T. Nelson Dale, Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1923.)

  The Bailey Prospects were located “on the west side of West River about a mile south-southwest of the Black Mountain quarry, in Dummerston.” The owner was David J. Bailey, R. D. Brattleboro. In 1921 the quarry was idle. Granite from the quarry was a light-gray color and had a medium to fine texture. In 1907 the opening measured 200 by 15 feet and had a working face of 10 feet.

• Dummerston, Windham County, Vermont - the Black Mountain Granite Quarry (from The Commercial Granites of New England, Bulletin 738, by T. Nelson Dale, Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1923.)

  The Black Mountain Quarry was located at the southwest foot of Black Mountain, three-quarters of a mile south-southeast of the village of West Dummerston, in Dummerston, and 5 miles north-northwest of Brattleboro.” The operator was Presbrey-Leland Quarries (Inc.), 681 Fifth Avenue, New York. There were two main granites taken from this quarry. The main granite was the Dummerston White,” which was a very light gray color speckled with bronze-colored mica with a medium texture. This granite was a building granite of a light shade and medium texture. The other granite found at the quarry was “dark blue” inclining to a medium bluish-gray color and fine to medium texture. This granite was a monumental granite of light bluish-gray color.

  Accessory minerals: Apatite, rutile. Secondary minerals: Kaolin, white micas, epidote, zoisite, calcite.

  The quarry opened about 1877. At some point the quarry was closed and reopened again in 1921. In 1907 the quarry measured about 1,200 feet in a N. 20° W. direction along the base of the mountain, by 200 feet across.” The quarry was from 15 to 50 feet deep.

  Granite from this quarry was used for buildings, monuments, and street work. Examples are: the Post Office at Troy, New York; the Diamond Bank in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; the McFadden Building in Chicago, Illinois, and the Royal Baking Powder Building and Plaza Hotel in New York City.

• Dummerston, Windham County, Vermont - the Clark Granite Quarries (from The Commercial Granites of New England, Bulletin 738, by T. Nelson Dale, Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1923.)

  The Clark Quarries were “east of West Dummerston village, on the northwest side of Black Mountain.” The operator was James Clark & Son of West Dummerston. In 1921 and 1922 the quarry was idle. There were two small openings. The lower opening was about 150 feet above the river bank and the upper opening about 330 feet. The granite taken from the lower quarry was of a very light gray color with conspicuous black mica and a medium to fine texture. The granite from the upper quarry appeared to be “exactly like the ‘white’ of the Black Mountain Quarry.”

• Duxbury, Vermont - Steatite/Soapstone Deposits (Excerpt from Report of the United States National Museum Under the Direction of the Smithsonian Institutions For the Year Ending June 30, 1886, Chapter entitled “The Collection of Building and Ornamental Stones In The U. S. National Museum: A Hand-book and Catalogue,” By George P. Merrill, Curator, Department Lithology and Physical Geology, pp. 285-291. “Soap-Stones of the Various States and Territories,” pp. 359-360.)

  “Vermont. - Most of the steatite of this State is found on the east side of the Green Mountains and near the eastern line of the talcose slate formation, beds of it extending nearly the entire length of the State. The rock occurs usually associated with serpentine and hornblende. The beds are not continuous and have, as a rule, a great thickness in comparison with their length. It not infrequently happens that several isolated outcrops occur on the same line of strata, sometimes several miles apart, and in many cases alternating with beds of dolomitic lime stone that are scattered along with them.

  “At least sixty beds of this rock occur in the State in the towns of …Duxbury….”

• East Barre, Vermont - Also see: Barre, Vermont & South Barre, Vermont.
• East Barre, Vermont – Ernest LeBlonde (Monument Manufacturer) (The following advertisement is from The Monumental News, August, 1895, Vol. 7, No. 8, Chicago, Illinois, pp. 522.)

  Ernest LeBlond,

  Manufacturer and Dealer in Barre Monuments and General Cemetery Work. Polishing a Specialty.
  Good Work Guaranteed. Works run by Water Power. Write for Prices.

  East Barre, VT.

• East Barre, Vermont – A. J. Young (Monument Manufacturer) (The following advertisement is from The Monumental News, August, 1895, Vol. 7, No. 8, Chicago, Illinois, pp. 527.)

  A. J. Young

  Manufacturer of General - Monumental - Work

  From Best Light and Dark Barre Granite.

  East Barre, VT.

• East Dorset, Vermont - Also see: Dorset, Vermont.
• Dorset’s Marble Heritage - the Dorset Historical Society Celebration for the Area’s Marble Quarries was held on Sunday, July 27, 2008. (Below is a portion of the announcement about the 2008 event.)

  “It's All About Marble,” Dorset’s Marble Heritage event to be held on Sunday, July 27th from 12 - 5:00 P.M. at the Dorset Historical Society, Bley House Museum, on VT-30, Dorset. The afternoon’s celebration will include Speaker’s Art Gilbert, retired geologist, Terry Tyler, Larry Becker, State Geologist, and Tyler Resch, author of “Dorset” as they focus on the history of the Dorset area’s quarries and marble industry.
   
  Area sculptor Rosalind Compain will be unveiling a sculpture for the Dorset Historical Society made from the Plateau marble. Sculptors Fred X. Brownstein, Michael Fannin, Ryder Owens, Paul Hilliard, Karen Preissler, and Steve Storchwill will each have a block of Plateau marble to demonstrate the art of carving and will complete their sculptures for a Dorset Historical Society auction event to be held at a later date....”
   
  “It’s All About Marble,” Dorset’s Marble Heritage will be free to the public and held on Sunday, July 27th rain or shine.   
   
  For more information about this special Dorset Historical Society event, or for general Dorset Historical Society information, please contact the Dorset Historical Society at (802) 867-0331.

  • The Dorset Historical Society has several publications available that contain very interesting information on their local abandoned quarries. A few of these publications include: (1) Dorset’s Marble Mountain, published by The Dorset Historical Society, Dorset, Vermont; (2) Three Easy Walks in Dorset to Historic Marble Quarry Sites All on Mts. Aeolus and Dorset, and each with impressive views: Gettysburg Quarry - overlooking the Dorset Valley; Folsom Quarry - with views over the Manchester valley; Freedley Quarry - views to the Green Mountains, Dorset Historical Society, 2005; (3) Walking Tour: Visit the historic village of Dorset, Vermont, Dorset Historical Society, 2004.

    Gettysburg Quarry, photo compliments of the Dorset Historical Society

• East Dorset, Vermont – D. L. Kent & Co. (The following advertisement is from The Reporter: Devoted To The Interests of Marble and Granite Workers, Vol. XVII, No. 6, published by Nichols & Co., Chicago, Illinois, June, 1884, pp. 14.)

  D. L. Kent. Samuel J. Prince.

  D. L. Kent & Co.,
  Producers and Wholesale Dealers in East Dorset Italian, South Dorset White, Florence and Rutland Marbles.

  The Dorset and Rutland Marbles, all from well-known quarries, are unsurpassed for Monumental and Building purposes. The Florence, but recently introduced, is daily increasing in popularity with the trade; its uniform and variegated colors of Light and Dark Blue, together with its peculiar Italian veining, making it a marble of wonderful beauty; while its fine texture and grain combined with soundness, strength, and durability, assures perfect safety in its being worked in any shape or manner. Turned and finished stock to the trade only. Tiles and Hearths of best quality. Price lists and Designs sent upon application. Office and Mills at East Dorset, Vermont. On line of Bennington & Rutland Railway, 58 miles from Troy, N.Y. and 25 miles from Rutland.

• East Dorset, Vermont - the East Dorset Italian Marble Quarry (from Commercial Marbles of Western Vermont, Bulletin 521, by T. Nelson Dale, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C., 1912.)

  “The East Dorset Italian quarry, also idle in 1910, is between the Folsom and Blue Ledge quarries about 300 feet south of the latter. Owner, Dorset Mountain Marble Co., East Dorset, Vt.

  “In 1900 marble about 35 feet thick was in sight and drillings at the bottom of quarry showed 17 feet more–beginning above, three 3-foot beds, one 2-foot, and one 6-foot.

  “Specimens M, IV, 192, a to d, from the west side, floor and 10 and 20 feet up, and from the south side, show a coarse white calcite marble of grade 5, in places with grayish bands or with limonitic bands from oxidized pyrite. A polished specimen (D, XXXI, 79, a) is of light bluish-gray color, with little plicated dark-gray graphitic beds.

  “The beds are horizontal; vertical joints strike N. 80° E. and N. 10 ° W., and one dipping 70° N. 55° W. strikes N. 35° E.”

• East Dorset, Bennington County, Vermont - the Hawley Field Marble Co. (Advertisement/Price List), E. J. Hawley, Frederick Field, and Charles Field, Proprietors. this advertisement can be found in the Dorset Historical Society collection. (The advertisement is used with permission.)

  Hawley & Field Marble Co., Producers of VT. Italian Marble.

  Yard and Mill at Rail Road Depot., East Dorset, Vermont, 1870.

  * * * * * * *

  The Vermont Italian Quarries.

  “There being at the present time a large and rapidly increasing demand for more durable marble and granite, in place of the less durable marbles, which have been extensively used for the past few years, it may be proper to state that the old Vermont Italian Quarry, on Mount Eolius, at East Dorset, first offered to the public a compact, strong and durable marble.

  “This marble some twenty-five years since was carefully analyzed and submitted to other severe scientific tests and declared to be, in composition, different from the ordinary marbles, and of extraordinary durability.

  “Subsequent observation, where it has stood in exposed situations for twenty years, with but slight tarnishing, shows these deductions of science to be correct. This marble is confidently believed to surpass in durability all other marble in use, domestic or foreign, and to fully merit the high praise it is receiving from many of the oldest and best Marble Dealers in the country.

  “The quality has steadily improved year by year, as the quarrying has been carried back from the front into the mountain. We have now sixty feet in thickness of sound marble in eighteen different layers. We can fill orders for monuments of the largest size and select the pieces to match for color and appearance. We believe no other quarry affords equal facilities for obtaining large blocks of uniform character.

  “Three-quarters of our marble is now ordered for Monuments and Headstones, for which it is admirably adapted, and gives universal satisfaction. We also have desirable layers for building fronts; also Mantle Marble susceptible of a high finish. No other quarry claiming to furnish Vermont Italian or East Dorset Italian Marble, has the depth of opening, or can furnish the upper mottled and variegated layers in sound condition.

  “We are now taking stock from beneath a bed of lime rock thirty feet in thickness and believe it to be superior to anything before offered to our customers.

  “We are also proprietors in the Æolian Quary (sic), so called, and can furnish marble from all the different layers.

  “Persons wishing to visit us will find our office, yard and mill opposite the Rail Road station, at East Dorset, Vt., on the Harlem Extension Rail Road, twenty-five miles south of Rutland, Vt., and sixty miles north of Troy, N. Y.

  “We add this season to our former facilities another Mill and heavier quarry force.

  “Freight to the South and West the same as from Rutland.

  HAWLEY & FIELD MARBLE CO., East Dorset, April 1 st 1870.

  Prices, Adopted March 15, 1870.

  Per Cubic Foot.

  Monuments, best Vein, Light and Dark - $4.50

  No. 1 - $4.00; No. 2 - $3.00

  Strips for Caps and Bases, Best Vein - $3.00

  No. 1 - $2.50; No. 2 - $2.00

  Defective - $1.50

  Bases for headstones, sawed - $3.00

  Posts, best, No. 1 - $2.50; No. 2 - $2.00

  Building Marble - $2.00 to $2.50

  Blocks in the rough - $1.50 to 2.00

  Boxing -.20

  Per Superficial Foot.

  One inch, Best Vein, and No. 1 average - $0.42; No. 2 - $0.30

  Two inch, best vein, light and dark - $0.70; No. 1 - $0.60; No. 2 - $0.40

  Slabs over 2 inches thick reduced to 2 inch measure.

  Tile broken to size - $0.30

  Tile finished and boxed - $0.45

  Tile, Marble and Slate, half each - $0.40

  Hearths, sawed edges - $0.30

  Foot Stones, edges sawed - $0.30; trimmed - $0.20

  Edging and boxing 2 inch - $0.10

  TERMS: - Four months on approved paper, payable at Bank, with exchange on New York City, interest added: or a discount of three per cent, will be made for cash. We do not hold ourselves responsible for delays or damages in transportation.

  E. J. Hawley, Fred’k Field, Chas. Field

  Hawley & Field Marble Co.

• Eden, Vermont - Steatite/Soapstone Deposits (Excerpt from Report of the United States National Museum Under the Direction of the Smithsonian Institutions For the Year Ending June 30, 1886, Chapter entitled “The Collection of Building and Ornamental Stones In The U. S. National Museum: A Hand-book and Catalogue,” By George P. Merrill, Curator, Department Lithology and Physical Geology, pp. 285-291. “Soap-Stones of the Various States and Territories,” pp. 359-360.)

  “Vermont. - Most of the steatite of this State is found on the east side of the Green Mountains and near the eastern line of the talcose slate formation, beds of it extending nearly the entire length of the State. The rock occurs usually associated with serpentine and hornblende. The beds are not continuous and have, as a rule, a great thickness in comparison with their length. It not infrequently happens that several isolated outcrops occur on the same line of strata, sometimes several miles apart, and in many cases alternating with beds of dolomitic lime stone that are scattered along with them.

  “At least sixty beds of this rock occur in the State in the towns of…Eden.…”

• Enosburgh, Vermont - Steatite/Soapstone Deposits (Excerpt from Report of the United States National Museum Under the Direction of the Smithsonian Institutions For the Year Ending June 30, 1886, Chapter entitled “The Collection of Building and Ornamental Stones In The U. S. National Museum: A Hand-book and Catalogue,” By George P. Merrill, Curator, Department Lithology and Physical Geology, pp. 285-291. “Soap-Stones of the Various States and Territories,” pp. 359-360.)

  “Vermont. - Most of the steatite of this State is found on the east side of the Green Mountains and near the eastern line of the talcose slate formation, beds of it extending nearly the entire length of the State. The rock occurs usually associated with serpentine and hornblende. The beds are not continuous and have, as a rule, a great thickness in comparison with their length. It not infrequently happens that several isolated outcrops occur on the same line of strata, sometimes several miles apart, and in many cases alternating with beds of dolomitic lime stone that are scattered along with them.

  “At least sixty beds of this rock occur in the State in the towns of… Enosburgh….”

• Fairhaven, Vermont – “Slate Quarrying and Manufacture in America” (and Vermont) pdf, in Scientific American, Vol. XXVII, No. 11, New York, September 14, 1872, pp. 160-161.

  Banner from the September 14, 1872, issue of Scientific American, in which the above article appeared

• Fair Haven, Vermont – A. N. Adams (The following advertisement is from The Reporter: Devoted To The Interests of Marble and Granite Workers, Vol. XVII, No. 6, published by Nichols & Co., Chicago, Illinois, June, 1884, pp. 14.)

  A. N. Adams, Fair Haven, Vermont.
  Established in 1845.

  Producer of Florence & Esperanza Marbles, And Sole Manufacturer of The Clogston Patent Gangs, Lathes, Slate Saws, Billiard Jointers. Lifting Jacks. Etc. Send For Circulars.

  (Caption under photograph: Clogston Patent Gang.)

• Fairhaven, Vermont – C. T. Maynard & Co. (Manufacturer) (The following advertisement is from The Monumental News, August, 1895, Vol. 7, No. 8, Chicago, Illinois, pp. 478.)

  C. T. Maynard & Co., Fairhaven, Vermont.

  Manufacturers of New and Improved Lifting Jacks. Double and triple Geared. All inside works are of cast steel, all boxes and bushings of brass and copper, center bar of hammered steel, machine cut gears, face plates of rolled steel, all jacks are white oak wood stock thoroughly seasoned. Not an ounce of cast iron used in their construction.

  We manufacture four sizes ranging from 2 to 10 and 15 tons. Write for Catalogue and price lists. We also manufacture Marble and Slate Mill Machinery, Gang Saws, Derricks, Hoisting Powers, Dump Cars, Block Cars and general stone working machinery.

• Fairhaven, Vermont – the Durick, Keenan & Co. (The following information is from the section "The Slate Trade" in Stone: An Illustrated Magazine Devoted to Stone, Marble, Granite, Slate, Cement, Contracting and Building, Vol. XXIV, No. 1, January, 1902, Stone Publishing Co., New York, pp. 74.)

  Michael Keenan has sold his interest in the slate business of Durick, Keenan & Co., of Fairhaven, Vt., to Daniel Durick and Patrick Keenan. Michael Keenan expects to open a slate mill formerly operated by Bolger Bros., at Hydeville. The former company has bought the Hazard quarry on Scotch Hill, for $5,000.

• Fair Haven, Vermont – Eureka Slate Quarries (The following information is from an advertisement in Stone: An Illustrated Magazine, Vol. XI, No. 6, November, 1895, Stone Publishing Co., New York, pp. XLiii.)

  Eureka Slate Quarries, Fair Haven, Vt.

  The oldest and largest Unfading Green Slate Quarry
  in the United States. Producers also of Mottled Green and Purple.
  A. Tuttle, Treas.

• Fairhaven, Vermont - A Large Block of Slate (Fairhaven, Vermont) (September 1888) The Manufacturer and Builder, Vol. 20, 20, Issue 9, September 1888, pgs. 202-203. (Article in digital images viewed at American Memory, Library of Congress.)
• Fair Haven, Vermont – Minogue & Greer (From Stone: An Illustrated Magazine, Vol. XII, No. 1, December, 1895, "Notes From Quarry and Shop" section, Stone Publishing Co., New York, pp. 76.)

  "Minogue & Greer, Fair Haven, Vt., have shipped a carload of roofing slate to a point in South America, which will necessitate its being transported about 200 miles over the Andes mountains on pack mules."

• Fair Haven - Vermont, "Slate Working"

  (colorized postcard photograph; published by Herbert W. Smith, Jeweler, Fair Haven, Vermont; made in Germany; postmark July 22, 1922, of men cutting slate)

• Fair Haven (outskirts of), Vermont - First Slate Quarry on Scotch Hill Road (1851) This site is presented by the New England Slate Company.
• Grafton, Vermont - Steatite/Soapstone Deposits (Excerpt from Report of the United States National Museum Under the Direction of the Smithsonian Institutions For the Year Ending June 30, 1886, Chapter entitled “The Collection of Building and Ornamental Stones In The U. S. National Museum: A Hand-book and Catalogue,” By George P. Merrill, Curator, Department Lithology and Physical Geology, pp. 285-291. “Soap-Stones of the Various States and Territories,” pp. 359-360.)

  “Vermont. - Most of the steatite of this State is found on the east side of the Green Mountains and near the eastern line of the talcose slate formation, beds of it extending nearly the entire length of the State. The rock occurs usually associated with serpentine and hornblende. The beds are not continuous and have, as a rule, a great thickness in comparison with their length. It not infrequently happens that several isolated outcrops occur on the same line of strata, sometimes several miles apart, and in many cases alternating with beds of dolomitic lime stone that are scattered along with them.

  “At least sixty beds of this rock occur in the State in the towns of Readsboro, Marlborough, Newfane, Windham, Townsend, Athens, Grafton, Andover, Chester, Cavendish, Baltimore, Ludlow, Plymouth, Bridgewater, Thetford, Bethel, Rochester, Warren, Braintree, Waitsfield, Moretown, Duxbury, Waterbury, Bolton, Stow, Cambridge, Waterville, Berkshire, Eden, Lowell, Belvidere, Johnson, Enosburgh, Westfield, Richford, Troy, and Jay.

  “Of the beds named those in Grafton and Athens are stated to have been longest worked and to have produced the most stone. The beds lie in gneiss. The quarries were profitably worked as early as 1820. Another important bed is that in the town of Weathersfield. This, like that of Grafton, is situated in gneiss, but has no overlying rock, and the soap-stone occurs in inexhaustible quantities. It was first worked about 1847, and during 1859 about 800 tons of material were removed and sold….”

• Graniteville, Vermont – Boutwell, Milne and Varnum

  Also see: “Barre, Washington County, Vermont – the Boutwell, Varnum, & Milne Company”

• Graniteville, Vermont – Boutwell, Milne and Varnum – “The Granite Industry of Barre, Vermont,” written by George H. Gilman of Claremont, New Hampshire, from Mine and Quarry Magazine, Sullivan Machinery Co., Publisher, Chicago, Illinois, Vol. IV. No. 3, January, 1910, pages 358-366. (The article discusses the equipment at the Barclay Brothers and, Boutwell, Milne, Varnum quarry.)

“Present-day Method of Dilling ‘Pug’ and “Foot Holes’ (Sullivan Drtills in Boutwell, Milne, Varnum Quarry)”

• Graniteville, Vermont – Boutwell, Milne and Varnum – The Story of the Rock of Ages, Boutwell, Milne & Varnum Company, Montpelier, Vermont, written and compiled by Athol R. Bell, 1925.  (history and photographs about the Boutwell, Milne & Varnum Company quarries)

Front cover of The Story of the Rock of Ages, the history of the Boutwell, Milne & Varnum Co., Montpelier, Vermont	Photograph of a horse-drawn wagon carrying granite in The Story of the Rock of Ages, the history of the Boutwell, Milne & Varnum Co., Montpelier, Vermont	Blocks of granite transported by rail in The Story of the Rock of Ages, the history of the Boutwell, Milne & Varnum Co., Montpelier, Vermont

• Graniteville, Vermont – Boutwell, Milne and Varnum Granite Quarry  (The photograph below was contributed by the Wisconsin Historical Society in March 2012.  On the back of the photograph is written:  “Boutwell Milne & Varnum #1”  The date and the photographer are unknown.  The original of this photograph will be sent to Paul Wood of the Vermont Granite Museum. According to Paul Wood, this is a turn-of-the-century photograph taken by O. J. Dodge, a Barre granite industry photographer.)

  Boutwell, Milne, and Varnum Granite Quarry, Graniteville, Vermont

• Graniteville, Vermont – Boutwell, Milne and Varnum Granite Quarry  (The photograph below was contributed by the Wisconsin Historical Society in March 2012.  On the back of the photograph is written:  “B M & V #2 #23006 Frank Linkenger (?).”  The date and the photographer are unknown.  The original of this photograph will be sent to Paul Wood of the Vermont Granite Museum. According to Paul Wood, this is a turn-of-the-century photograph taken by O. J. Dodge, a Barre granite industry photographer.)

  Boutwell, Milne, and Varnum Granite Quarry, Graniteville, Vermont

• Graniteville, Vermont – the J. K. Pirie Dark Blue & Medium Barre Granite Quarries  (Formerly the “Wells, Lamson & Company Dark Quarry”)  (Advertisement from The Monumental News, April 1905, pp. 283)

  Dark Blue and Medium Barre Granite Quarries
  J. K. Pirie, Proprietor
  Formerly known as the Wells, Lamson & Company Dark Quarry.

  Having purchased the interest of the George Lamson Estate in this quarry, I am prepared to furnish rough stock to the limits of transportation, and will devote my whole time to this branch of business, as I have sold my interest in the Wells, Lamson & Co.’s Manufacturing and Light Quarry properties.  Address all communications to James K. Pirie, Graniteville, VT.

  J. K. Pirie Medium Barre Granite Quarry (left side of photo) & J. K. Pirie Dark Barre Granite Quarry (right side of photo) Advertisement in “The Monumental News,” April 1905, pp. 283

• Graniteville, Vermont – James K. Pirie  (Advertisement from Granite Marble & Bronze, Vol. 27, No. 2, February 1917, pp. 8)

  James K. Pirie, P. O. Graniteville, Vermont

  The Wonder of the Hills.  The Pirie Quarry is located right in the heart of the Barre hills – the greatest granite center of the world; and from this quarry comes The Wonder of the Hills – Pirie’s Dark Barre Granite.  Pirie’s Dark Barre Granite has a beautiful texture that is remarkable for its freedom from streaks and knots.

  The large illustration above shows a view of the Pirie Quarry, and the small photograph inserted is taken from the top of the quarry where the cars are loaded for shipment.

James K. Pirie, P. O. Graniteville, Vermont, advertisement from Granite Marble & Bronze, February 1917, pp. 8.

Graniteville, Vermont – the J. K. Pirie Dark Barre Granite Quarries (Advertisement from The Monumental News, Vol. XXXI, No. 9, September 1919, pp. 606)

J. K. Pirie, the Pioneer Producer of Dark Barre Granite greets you
Pirie’s Dark Barre Granite has stood the test of time

I am pleased to state that my quarries are in most excellent condition to supply almost an unlimited demand for the very best grade of the famous Wells & Lamson Dark.

J. K. Pirie, the sole owner of the famous Wells & Lamson Dark Barre Quarries,
Graniteville, Vermont

J. K. Pirie, the Pioneer Producer of Dark Barre Granite greets you.  J. K. Pirie, the sole owner of the famous Wells & Lamson Dark Barre Quarries, Graniteville, Vermont (Advertisement from The Monumental News, September 1919, pp. 606)

• Graniteville, Vermont – James K. Pirie Dark Barre Granite Quarry (Granite)  (Advertisement from Granite Marble & Bronze, Vol. 30, No. 10, October 1920, pp. 54)

  James K. Pirie, Graniteville, VT

  Of all the fine things that can be said of Pirie’s Dark Barre granite one of the finest is that it is a truly beautiful production of the Vermont Hills.  Its freedom from streaks and clear bright sparkle lend an added attraction to any work cut from it.  Its even texture makes work on it a real pleasure because every fine detail of the design can be faithfully depicted in the granite.  Yu should not only specify it but insist on it for all fine work.

James K. Pirie, Graniteville, Vermont – Pirie’s Dark Barre Granite advertisement from Granite Marble & Bronze, October 1920, pp. 54

• Graniteville, Vermont – C. E. Tayntor & Company Quarry (Granite) – “The World’s Largest Derrick” (located at the C.E. Tayntor quarry in Graniteville, Vermont), by Andreas Kuehnpast.  “This article was originally published in The Barre-Montpelier Times Argus on August 4, 2014.  It is used here with permission.”  (Andreas Kuehnpast is an industrial engineer from Germany.  In his spare time he researches the Barre granite industry and the railroad that served it, the Barre & Chelsea Railroad.)
  

  “This circa 1895 photo of the C.E. Tayntor quarry shows the largest derrick in the world in the center.”  (“The World’s Largest Derrick,” by Andreas Kuehnpast. Photo from the collection of Todd Paton and is used with permission.)

• Graniteville, Vermont – Rock of Ages Visitors Center, 558 Graniteville Road, Graniteville, Vermont 05654.
• Graniteville, Vermont – Rock of Ages Corporation (present-day company)
  • “Polycor acquires Swenson Granite and Rock of Ages,” by Stone World, September 19, 2106,
    

  “Quebec City, Canada – In a friendly acquisition, Polycor of Quebec City, Canada, has purchased Swenson Granite, based in Concord, New Hampshire, and Rock of Ages of Barre, Vermont....”

  • “The World’s Leading Granite, Direct from The Quarry,” by Rock of Ages. 
    

  Photographs and descriptions of the following granite quarries included in this publication are:  Barre Gray granite, quarried at Barre, Vermont; Bethel White granite quarried in the Green Mountains in Vermont; Salisbury Pink granite, quarried in North Carolina; Gardenia White granite, quarried near their Salisbury operation in North Carolina; American Black granite, quarried “about 50 miles northwest of Philadelphia in the...town of Elverson, Pennsylvania.”  Photographs of structures constructed from these granites are also included.

  • Visitors Center At Rock of Ages – Vermont Granite Quarry Tours, Factory Tours, 558 Graniteville road, Graniteville, Vermont.
  • Graniteville, Vermont – the Vermont Slate Co., Roofing, Granville, Vt. (This company information was listed in Slate: It’s Products and Interests, Vol. 1, No. 3, August 1910, pp. 13)
    • Rock of Ages offers guided tours of the “mammoth, celebrated Smith Quarry, at nearly 600 feet deep, we believe it to be the largest operating deep-hole, dimension granite quarry in the world.”    A self-guided tour of their Vermont factory is also available.  (See this section for details of both of these tours.) 
  • “A Brief History” of Rock of Ages 
    • “Connections From Norman Rockwell to Frank Lloyd Wright to Star Trek and more....” 
  • Rock of Ages Granite Products
    • Mausoleums and Columbarium
    • Photo Gallery of Memorials 
  • Traditional Memorials:  Tombstones, gravestones, headstones, cemetery stones, flat markers. 
  • Granites available from Rock of Ages
    • “Granites by Rock of Ages Rough, Dimension Granite Blocks” (At the bottom of this page, there is a link allowing downloading of a copy of their dimension / raw block catalog.) 
  • “Video Gallery,” by presented on the Rock of Ages web site.
    • In addition to several videos about the Rock of Ages memorials, these videos are also available in this section:  “Rock of Ages Vermont Granite Quarry Tour, Factory Tour & Sandblast Activity”;  “LCV Cities Tour − Montpelier Vermont's Granite History”; “Rock of Ages − The World’s Leading Granite”;  “Direct From the Quarry”; “Explosive Detonation at Rock of Ages’ Quarry”;  & “Elmwood & Hope Cemeteries in Barre, Vermont.”

  • Rock of Ages “Barre Granite” videos also available include:

    • Descent into Rock of Ages Smith Quarry, Barre, Vermont, by Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “The video takes you into the depths of the world’s largest deep-hole, dimensional granite quarry, the Rock of Ages’ ‘Smith Quarry’ in Barre, VT. This quarry was featured in the new Star Trek movie.  This video courtesy of Rock of Ages, Barre, VT, www.rockofages.com; Tours.rockofages.com to learn how to visit this site while in VT.”
    • Torch Channeling at Rock of Ages’ Quarry, Barre, VT
      • “See the older torch method of channeling a massive block in Rock of Ages’ Barre granite quarry. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Splitting Along Rift of Granite Blocks, Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “Watch as mammoth granite blocks are split along the rift at Rock of Ages in Barre, VT. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Channeling Granite at Rock of Ages Quarries in Barre, Vermont
      • “Channeling is the first step in removing blocks of granite from Rock of Ages granite quarries in Barre, VT. This video courtesy of Rock of Ages Corporation, Barre, VT, Tours.rockofages.com”
    • Lift Charge Exploding at Rock of Ages Smith Quarry, Barre, Vermont, by Rock of Ages
      • “Explanation of how explosive is used to separate the bottom of the bench when removing granite blocks from the Rock of Ages Smith Quarry in Barre, VT. This video courtesy of Rock of Ages, Barre, VT, www.rockofages.com or Tours.rockofages.com to learn how tour this site while in Vermont.”
    • Enormous Granite Block Lifted From Rock of Ages’ Quarry, Barre, Vermont, by Rock of Ages
      • “See a block lifted from the Rock of Ages quarry in Barre, VT, as seen in the new Star Trek movie. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Slabbing Granite Blocks at Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “See diamond-wire saws and 12’ diamter diamond circular saws cut huge blocks of Barre granite into slabs. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Catapillar Work Horse of Rock of Ages Granite Quarries, Barre, Vermont
      • “Watch the workhorse of the Rock of Ages granite quarries in Barre, VT. The 992 is shown deep within Rock of Ages quarries. Video courtesy of Rock of Ages Corporation, Barre, VT, Tours.rockofages.com”
    • Caterpillar 992B Working in Rock of Ages Quarries, Barre, Vermont
      • “Watch as the tireless 992Bs work deep within the Rock of Ages granite quarries in Barre, VT. This video courtesy of Rock of Ages Corporation, Barre, VT, Tours.rockofages.com”
    • Granite Block Inspection, Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “Watch as Marco Parent inspects a block of Barre grey granite. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry tour info.”
    • Sawing Granite Blocks into Slabs, Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “See 12’ diamond circular saws and diamond-wire saws cut huge blocks of Rock of Ages’ Barre granite into slabs. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factor tour info while in VT.”
    • Hand Finishing Granite at Rock of Ages in Barre, Vermont, by Rock of Ages
      • “The artisans will amaze you. Watch hand pitching and other granite finishing techniques. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Polishing Granite at Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “Watch automated polishers and hand polishers polish granite to a fine luster. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Etching Granite at Rock of Ages, by Rock of Ages, Barre, Vermont
      • “Watch as master artist Phil Hagopian etches on granite at Rock of Ages, Barre, VT Tours.rockofages.com for tour info when in Vermont.”
    • Master Granite Sculptors of Rock of Ages, Rock of Ages Barre, Vermont
      • “Be amazed by master sculptors transforming world-famous Rock of Ages’ Barre granite into unbelievable statuary. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info when in VT.”
    • A Tour of Barre, Vermont – Granite Center of the World, by Rock of Ages
      • “A video tour of Barre, VT, ‘The Granite Center of the World,’ This video courtesy of Rock of Ages Corporation, Tours.rockofages.com”
    • Granite Statues in Barre, Vermont, by Rock of Ages
      • “See Barre’s exquisitely carved public statues. Tours.rockofages.com for quarry and factory tour info while in VT.”
    • Elmwood Cemetery & Hope Cemetery in Barre, Vermont, by Rock of Ages
      • “A video tour of historic Elmwood and Hope cemeteries in Barre, VT, highlighting the tremendous artistry of the Barre granite industry. This video is courtesy of Rock of Ages Corp. Tours.rockofages.com”
• Graniteville, Vermont – Rock of Ages Quarry images/photographs presented by Edward Burtynsky, photographer, on ArtNet.
• Graniteville, Washington County, Vermont – “Star Trek: The Big Cliff,” blog by David B. Williams, May 13, 2009, about the Rock of Ages (E. L. Smith) granite quarry used in the new Star Trek movie. (More information on the new Star Trek movie can be obtained on Wikipedia, Star Trek (film) 2009.)
  • Below are some of the other online articles that discuss the Rock of Ages / E. L. Smith Quarry in Graniteville, Vermont, used in the new Star Trek movie:
    • “Star Trek” film features Vt Quarry, on the Rutland Herald.com web site.
    • Vermont Landmark featured in new Star Trek Movie:  Rock of Ages’ Smith Quarry goes Trekkie, on free-press-release.com.
    • Local Quarry’s Star Appearance in “Star Trek,” on the WCAX News web site.
• Graniteville, Vermont - Rock of Ages Granite Quarries

  “Largest Block of Granite Ever Quarried: Vermont ranks first in the production of granite and in Barre, the Granite Center, are located the Rock of Ages quarries which are the most extensive yet developed anywhere. Here are shown 300 workmen stationed on a block 200 feet long, 80 feet wide and 24 feet thick. It weighed 69,000,000 Lbs. and 1700 flat cars were required to transport it.” (colorized postcard photograph, 2261-30; made by Curt Teich & Co., Inc., Chicago, U.S.A.; no postmark, early 1900s)

• Graniteville, Vermont – Wells, Lamson & Company Dark Quarry (Granite)

(See “Graniteville, Vermont  the J. K. Pirie Dark Blue and Medium Barre Granite Quarries,” above.)

• Graniteville, Vermont – the Wells-Lamson Quarry, Graniteville, Vermont, 9/25/1950 Photographs taken by Connie Niles. (The following photographs are used with permission.)
• Groton, Caledonia County, Vermont – the Benzie Granite Quarry (from The Commercial Granites of New England, Bulletin 738, by T. Nelson Dale, Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1923.)

  The Benzie Quarry was located in Groton about a mile S. 25° W. from the Wells River Bridge at Groton and 300 feet above it, and about 4 ½ miles S. 85° W. from Blue Mountain, is Ryegate.” At the time of the report in 1923 the operator was the Bonazzi Quarry Co. (Inc.) of Montpelier, Vermont. The granite was called “Vermont Blue” and is of a medium, very bluish gray color with a medium to fine texture.

  Accessory minerals: Titanite, pyrite, zircon crystals, apatite, allanite. Secondary minerals: a white mica, calcite, leucoxene.

  The Benzie Quarry opened in 1896. When the quarry was measured in 1907, it was from about 200 by 175 feet and had a depth from 40 to 60 feet. The granite was carted 1 ½ miles to the cutting shed at Groton.

  The granite from the Benzie Quarry was used for monuments and buildings. There is a granite dike of fine stone which was used for “special orders and carved work.” Examples of use of this granite are the Davison monument at Woodsville, New Hampshire, and the Dr. S. N. Eastman monument at Groton, Vermont.

• Hardwick, Vermont – Bashaw Brothers (Monument Manufacturers) (The following advertisement is from The Monumental News, August, 1895, Vol. 7, No. 8, Chicago, Illinois, pp. 525.)

  Bashaw Brothers,

  Manufacturers of Hardwick Granite.

  Estimates on all classes of Monumental Work.Hardwick, VT.

• Hardwick, Vermont – Bickford & Moore – Granite Quarrying (The following information is from the section "Marble and Granite" in Stone: An Illustrated Magazine Devoted to Stone, Marble, Granite, Slate, Cement, Contracting and Building, Vol. XXIV, No. 1, January, 1902, Stone Publishing Co., New York, pp. 61.)

  Bickford & Moore

  Bickford & Moore, of Hardwick, Vt., have secured a contract for granite to be used in the Lake Shore and Rock Island Union Terminal Station at Chicago. From 350 to 380 carloads of granite will be required, and it will require a force of about 150 men to complete the job in nine months.

• Hardwick, Caledonia County, Vermont - Buffalo Hill Granite Quarry (from The Commercial Granites of New England, Bulletin 738, by T. Nelson Dale, Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1923.)

  The Buffalo Hill Quarry was located “about 2 ½ miles S. 60° W. from Hardwick village and about 500 feet above it.” In 1923 the operator was the Hardwick Granite Company of Hardwick. At the time of the inspection about 1923, the quarry had been idle since 1917. The granite in the quarry was “Dark-Blue Hardwick,” which is a dark-gray shade “a little darker than “Dark Barre” and a little lighter than “Dark Quincy.” It has a medium texture.

  Accessory minerals: Pyrite, magnetite, apatite, zircon (crystals), and allanite. Secondary minerals: Kaolin, a white mica, epidote, and calcite. The soda-lime feldspar is radially intergrown with quartz.

  The Buffalo Hill Quarry opened about 1887. In 1907 the quarry had a small irregular opening from about 20 to 30 feet deep. The quarry has no “sheets,” but is a “boulder quarry.” Transport of the granite was by cart 2 ½ miles to Hardwick.

  Granite from the Buffalo Hill Quarry was used for monuments, “particularly for polished and rock-faced work.”

• Hardwick, Vermont - Carter Granite Quarries Inc. (advertisement - publication and date of publication are unknown)

  Royal Blue Granite

  Is hard, fine-grained, clear and durable. It comes in good patterns and is easy working. It is dark blue in color and shows a splendid contrast between its light hammered and dark polished surface. It is an ideal stone for polishing, closing up perfectly and retaining its dark blue color indefinitely.

  Send for free sample and prices of rough stock and slabs.

  Carter Granite Quarries, Inc.

  Quarries, Hardwick, Vermont

  Office, Aldrich Building, Barre, Vermont

  If you are interested in finished work from Royal Blue send a trial order to us - now. Royal Blue, when polished shows one of the best Blue and White surfaces in the granite industry. May we quote you on the above design?

  George Y. Ralph, Hardwick, Vermont

  “From the rough to a perfect ashler”

• Hardwick, Vermont – the Columbian Granite Company (From Stone: An Illustrated Magazine, Vol. XII, No. 1, December, 1895, "Notes From Quarry and Shop" section, Stone Publishing Co., New York, pp. 82.)

  "There has been little change in the situation of the Columbian Granite Company, Hardwick, Vt. A meeting of the Directors washeld (sic), and Mr. Meader said that a stockholders' meeting would be called for December 2, to see if they wanted to close up or continue. Rumors of dissatisfaction have been rife for some time. Stockholders have found fault because there seemed to be constantly increasing indebtedness. Mr. Meader says that shipments have been made sufficient to cover every cent of indebtedness, and that there would have been no difficulty had the company been let alone until collections could be made. – Hardwick Gazette."

• Hardwick, Vermont – the Crystal Brook Granite Company  (from The Monumental News, Vol. XIX, No. 2, February 1907, pp. 160)

New (Crystal Brook Granite C.) plant located at Hardwick, Vermont, equipped with pneumatic tools and improved machinery of all kinds for promptly turning out the highest grades of work.

• Hardwick, Vermont – Fletcher's Quarry, Hardwick, Vermont

  (postcard photograph, early 1900s; unmailed)

• Hardwick, Vermont – Hardwick Granite Company – Dark Blue Hardwick Granite Quarry (Granite) (Advertisement from The Monumental News, August 1905, pp. 569)
  

  Dark Blue Hardwick Granite
  Hardwick Granite Co., Hardwick, Vt.

  Unsurpassed for Polished, Traced and Rock Faced.  We supply Rough Stock only.  Send for round polished sample 60 cents; Two for $1.00, postpaid. Cash with order.

Hardwick Granite Company – Dark Blue Hardwick Granite Quarry, Hardwick, Vermont,Advertisement from “The Monumental News,” Aug. 1905, pp. 569.

• Hardwick, Vermont – J. E. Sullivan, Manufacturer of Granite Work  (Advertisement from The Monumental News, April 1903, pp. 221)

  J. E. Sullivan, Manufacturer of High-Grade Granite Work
  From the Best Hardwick and Barre Granites.
  Fine Monumental Work a Specialty.
  Hardwick, VT.
  Lettering, carving and tracing done with pneumatic tools.
  Office, quarries and water power finishing works, Hardwick Vt.

• Hardwick, Caledonia County, Vermont – the Northern Granite Company Quarry near Hardwick Village (from The Commercial Granites of New England, Bulletin 738, by T. Nelson Dale, Department of the Interior, United States Geological Survey, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1923.)

  The Northern Granite Company, located at 168 College Street, Burlington, about 1923, operated a small quarry in 1915 located “south-southeast of Hardwick village.” This granite in this quarry is reported to be a dark granite on the south side of the quarry and a fine light granite on the north side of the quarry. The granite from this quarry was used in monuments, although during the time of the report in 1923, the quarry had been idle since 1915.

• Hardwick, Vermont – T. A. Green (Monument Manufacturer) (The following advertisement is from The Monumental News, August, 1895, Vol. 7, No. 8, Chicago, Illinois, pp. 525.)

  T. A. Green, Box 65. Hardwick, VT.

  Light and Dark Hardwick and Woodbury Granite Monuments,

  Tablets and General Cemetery Work. You will get my estimates by return mail.

• Hardwick, Vermont – the Woodbury Granite Company  (Advertisement from Granite Marble and Bronze, Vol. XXVI No. 12, December 1916, pp. 4.  Note, the same advertisement published in this 1917 issue of Granite Marble & Bronze, Vol. 27, No. 2, February 1917, pp. 4, below.)

  • Hardwick, Vermont – the Woodbury Granite Company  (Advertisement from Granite Marble & Bronze, Vol. 27, No. 2, February 1917, pp. 4)

    Woodbury Granite Company, Hardwick, Vermont

    The Hon. Carroll S. Page, Senator from Vermont, chose Bethel White Granite for this shaft, confirming our slogan, “If it’s large, try Woodbury.”

    For big public memorials and mausoleums we have the stones and the experience.  Our book The Woodbury Granites is yours for the asking.  With three quarries, three granites, and the three largest cutting plants in the trade, we are equipped to handle any work that may be offered.

Woodbury Granite Company, Hardwick, Vermont, Advertisement from Granite Marble & Bronze, February 1917, pp. 4.

• Hardwick, Vermont – the Woodbury Granite Company  (Advertisement from Stone, July 1917, pp. 351)

  Woodbury Granite Company, Hardwick, Vermont
  Woodbury Gray Granite

  We are specialists in mausoleum construction.  If you can afford an automobile, you can afford a Woodbury Granite mausoleum, built for permanence.  Consult your local monument dealer as to the merits of Woodbury Granite and our workmanship.

“Richards Mausoleum, Newton, Massachusetts”

 

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