Quarrying

Quarrying. . , Although the first commercial quarry in Marblehead didn't open until 1834, stone was being quarried on a small scale prior to that time. The Marblehead Lighthouse and the associated Keeper's House were built in 1821-22 of local limestone. Although we cannot say for certain that the stone for the lighthouse was quarried from the small quarry in front of you, it would seem logical not to move the stone any further than necessary in an area with few roads. This small quarry is probably typical of the quarries beginning to be operated on the Marblehead Península in the first decades of the 19th Century. No State quarry records or regulating laws were in place before the late 1840s, so the exact history of this quarry is uncertain., Before today's heavy equipment and the use of high explosives, quarrying was largely an activity of manual labor. Excavating using hammers, pickaxes and shovels was common. Heating with a fire source could cause the stone to crack aiding in its removal. Wedging with steel wedges and hammers could be employed if the stone had numerous natural cracks and fissures., During the mid-19th century, many small and medium sized quarries were operated in the Marblehead and Kelleys Island region. The Kelleys Island Lime and Transport Company (KIL&T) began purchasing and consolidating the independent operations, and by 1886 was the largest quarry operator on the peninsula. KIL&T eventually purchased and expanded the Lakeside and Marblehead Railroad in 1891 to serve its quarry operations., The purity of some limestone in the Marblehead and Kelleys Island quarries approached or surpassed 90% calcium carbonate (CaCO3) making it highly valued for chemical uses in steel and glass making. Much of the stone today is used for construction and as aggregates for cement and in highway construction., The Marblehead Quarry was sold by KIL&T in 1955 to Chemstone Corporation, then to Standard Slag Company in 1962, and finally to Lafarge Holcim in 1989. Holcim still operates the quarry.