The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1884-10-01
MAINE GRANITE.
The Quarry where the Granite Uscs
for the Government Buildings is
Taken From.

ings, handsome and costly specimens
of architecture, and structures which
are marvels of engineering skill, the
carved and polished walls and tow
ers of which once lay in rugged
masses on little island far out on
the bosom of Penobscott Bay. This
island is the southerly of a pictur-
esque pair known as North Fox and
South Fox, each being incorporated
as town, named respectively North
Haven and Vinalhaven. 1t was 80
long ago as 1765 that South Fox saw
its first white settlers, and "a years
afterward it was incorporated as a
town. named as above for John vi
nal, Esq. of Boston, some of whose
relatives yet live on the island. The
southerly half of this sea-girt town
is one solid mass of beautiful gran
ite, and the quarrying of this stone
has created pretty village of 1000
people at one of the many snug
coves-Carver's Harbor.
Eor nearly half century stone for
building and paving has been sen.
from Vinalhaven, but it was not un-
til the decade of 1S50-60 that very
much was done. In 1851 Moses
Webster and ]. r. Bodwell, one
New Hampshire boy. the other from
Massachusetts, went to the rocky
island, and with a capital of about
$500 began quarrying operations.
They had few tools and no machin-
cry, but got out the stone as best
they knew, and then slowly convey
ed it to the shore on drags drawn by
cattle. When the government built
two big forts in New York harbor in
1852 or '53, the contract for furnish
ing the stone was given to Bodwell &
Webster, who managed to fill the
bill all right, and thus got a good
start in the world. Since then they
have prospered, and now do proba-
bly, the largest quarrying business
in the United States, employing
from 500 to 100 men as the volume
of trade varies. paying $4,000 to
$4,000 month in wages, and keep
ing the whole island community
happy and prosperous.
To see 500 quarrymen, teamsters,
blacksmiths, cutters and polishers
all at work, hammers and tongs,"
is an interesting sight. Were it not
for the fact that granite is found in
strata of quite uniform thickness,
quarrying would be most difficult
and expensive operation, and a great
part of the stone would be wasted.
When quantity of stone is to be
taken out the first thing necessary is
tc make a head" that is to cut
downward through the horizontal
strata until whole transverse sec
ton of layer is exposed to the
foundation. Then, at the desired
distance back from this head, which
resembles ditch 20 to 80 feet long,
the quarrymen drill what are known
as Miller holes " in the granite,
which consists of three triangular
ori6ces. drilled close together, and
some depth into the stone. Gener-
ally one group suffices occasional
two or three are drilled. Into these
holes arepoured tremendous charges
of giant powder, which, when ex-
ploded, start the whole mass of stone
as far as the " head from its strata
bed. After that it is easily split up
by driving little iron wedges into
series of holes drilled on the dimen-
sion line. Immense derricks, guyed
up by heavy wire rigging, and oper-
ated by stationary steam engines,
swing the stone from place to place
in the quarry rollers of iron and
hard wood are used for the heaviest
pieces. Ponderous trucks, drawn by
heavy horses, go fioundering along
toward the cutting shop, with great
blocks triced up under their rear
axles with chains. The truck wheels
being about fifteen feet high, it will
be seen that large stone can be
carried in this way without dragging.
The quarrymen work the year round
and average s1.65 per day bows,
s1.50, and cutters 1915 to 1920. All
the tools, except one kind of ham,
mer, are furnished by the company.
At the Sands Quarry, Vinalhaven.
not long ago, one of the largest, if
not the largest pieces of granite ever
quarried was taken out for the Gen.
Wool monument, at Troy, n. Y. 1t
was from 10 to 10 feet square and 60
feet long. After all the labor and
expense, however, the monstrous
stone was found to contain a flaw :;
it was rejected, and another had to
be cut.
A beautiful monument for DIR.
William Gibson and wife. of James
town, Pa, (who are not yet dead, by
the way, is In process of cutting
here 1t will stand on sarcophagus,
and will consist of a tall pillar with
ornamental base and cap, to be sur
mounted by a statue representing
Faith. The work has taken two
years now, and the monument will
cost s65, 600
In Vinalhaven every man has
granite doorsteps, granite hitching
posts, and even a walk or curb of
granite before his house, at little or
no expense. One man who lives
near the shore has a wharf of this
neat white stone for his private use,
and there is no reason why all hands
shouldn't have granite houses, ex-
cept, perhaps, that they havn't time
to build them, for there are thous-
ands of tons of the material thrown
away for slight imperfections in
color.
That part of Vinalhaven which
has been dug up and shipped away
as granite of late years is distributed
principally thus: Chicago board of
Trade, Cincinnati Custom House
and Post Office Atlanta, Ga, Post
Office and Custom House; Fall
River Custom House and Post Of
fee; East River Bridge; St. Louis
Bridge basement and sub-basement