The Portland daily press., 1875-11-10
The Granite Business.
Carver's Harbor, Dix Island, Clark's rs.
land.

The Bodwell Granite Company has its princi
pal quarry at Carver's Harbor. The Company
owns six or eight quarries all along the coast.
1t is stock company having its headquarters
at Rockland. Mr.. Bodwell and Hon. Moses
Webster of Carver's Harbor are two of the
principal stockholders At Carvers Harbor
the quarries are very extensive and the granite
of fine quality Tine last of October, one
thousand men were employed at that point.
The Company has a contract for getting out the
granite for the Cincinnati post office and court
house. The first story of the immense build
was completed about the last of October and
shipped. The operations are much the same as
at Hurricane Island only on much more ex
tended SCALE The works cover acres of ground.
In one shed $50 stone cutters were at work on
that fine work where it takes one or two men
to complete piece in six months. These WORK.
men are of all nation alities. Among the most
skillful are the Italians who have found their
way hither Then there are Scotch Irish and
English and the Yankee now Ieckons he can
do that sort of work as well as any other man
if it will pay.
1t is very busy place, and in that village
one will see more evidences of business activi-
ty than In some of our Maine cities. The
stores are full of goods and there seemed to be
lots of customers.
The village must contain nearly 5000 inhabi-
tants. Five years ago it did not contain over
twenty houses. Since that it has grown to be
one of our larger sized villages. In one sea-
son one hundred and fifty houses were built.
The largest retail store in that part of the state
is in that village--that of the Bodwell Granite
Company. There lives Hon. Moses Webster,
the Republican who can get more votes than
any man in the party but not quite enough to
make him senator over the Democratic prepon-
derance which st. George and Thomaston fur
nish.
Atthis point the Company have large build
ing in which the machinery is run by steam
and water for the polishing of granite. The
huge blocks are first cut and made smooth
by hand, then they are hauled to the mill,
put upon platforms over which the scour-
ing machinery is placed and adjusted so as to
be brought to bear upon the granite. First
coarse, sharp sand is used to produce an even
surface with water and then emery is used to
polish. When the work is completed, granite
looks little like the rough material of the quar-
ry. Granite of any size can be quarried at
Carver's Harbor. We saw one piece 12x2O feet
aud q feet thick, which was being moved to
the sheds to be cut. Hon. George Goodwin of
Wells is the Superintendent at this quarry
The name of the town is Vinalhaven. but
Carver's Harbor is the post Office The de
scendants of the man for whom the town was
named and the one for whom the harbor is
called, still reside in the town and are among
the prominent men in the public and business
affairs of the town. David Vinal Esq, Clay
Wing in early days, a Republican since 1856
has been postmaster over thirty years. While
he has held the Office, the mails have been
changed from once week to once day, and
the mail matter from few letters and papers
once in seven days to hundreds of each every
day. AT Carver's Harbor is the E. p. Walker
Engine Co., which visited Portland this fall
and, we are sorry to add, went away not so
happy as they might have been, although un-
questionably the finest hand engine company
IN the state.
DIX ISLAND
Dix Island is the oldest of the quarres
where large amounts of granite for govern
ment buildings were first cut 1t is owned by
New York firm, of which Messrs Dixon of
New York are toe principal parties The
| island originally contained but sixty acres, and
| although from 500 to 1900 men have been
at work five or six years in quarrying, cutting
| and shipping the stone, the area CT the island
| is larger low than it was originally. This
| arises from the fact that there are tons of
grout, or waste stone, for every ton that Is fit
| to ship, and this waste is used in levelng down
| and extending the surface into the sea. The
| first of November about 700 men were EN-.
| plcyed on the government contract at that
island, which is, we think, post office in
Philadelphia. The appropriation is expended
and it is thought that work will be nearly sus
pended Dec 1. r. L. Fogg ESQ, of Augusta,
| is the superintendent at Dix Island
CLARK's ISLAND
At Clark's Island there is another valuable
quarry. The government contract now undel
way there is a small one--the Hartford post-of
flee. The force is not large. Edwin Spragut
OF Rockland is the government superintendent
An impression prevails that the contractors
are getting rich out of the government contracts
Such is not the case. The competition is yer,
sharp and the party who gets the lowest tn
past few years must have but a small margin
| Toe amount of capital involved is very larg
and the government is slow sometimes in max
ing payments and as it cannot be sued, it
agents frequently put the contractors to grea
deal of extra trouble and cost for which n