Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1889-10-18
ROCHE HAR3oR LIME.
host Elaborate Works in the United
States.

! in course Of construction, one thou
sand barrels of lime will he turned out
each working day of the year, by this
one factory.
Lime is the oxide OF the metal cal
cium, or as it is called in chemistry,
alkaline earth" In a state of purity
it is a white powder, with alkaline
reaction, and SO infusible as to resist a
very intense heat. In heating car
Donate OF lime 10 full red or white
heat, carbonate acid is expelled and
lime is left; in this State it is called
quick-lime OF burned lime to distin-
guish it from slaked lime. On pour
ing water on quick-lime the bulk is
increased and the two combine. form
ing white, dry powder and causing
great heat. After being thus slaked''
| with water, the lime absorbs carbonic
acid from the air and hardens, which
causes the process in Setting" brick
walls, etc, the gravel being added to
form "centers" for hardening around.
The finest marble is the nearest to
pure lime of any known substance.
Other forms of carbonate of lime are
found in rocks, the various varie,
ties of sea shells, etc.
The use OF lime dates back many
centuries-png before the time ,oi
written history. The process used by
the ancients in making lime from the
carbonate is unknown, but the method
in vogue a few centuries ago was very
crude, and many improvements arc
made even at the present time.
The first process of burning lime
that was used in modern times was
known as the "pot kiln" This was
usually wall of stone from three tc
four feet high, about eighteen inches
in diameter, with an opening at the
bottom for q furnace" The kiln
would be filled with limej rock
the furnace was at the bottom, where
the lime was also taken out after cool
ing.
About thirty years ago, when the
ownership ef these Northwestern isl
ands was in dispute, the matter was
settled for the time by joint occupa-
ton by England and America, and
during this time the English soldiers
stationed on San Juan island burned
large quantities of lime, using the "pot
kilns" described above.
When the dispute over San Juan
island was settled by conceding to the
United states, the lime quarry on
Roche 'saor was homesteaded, and
in 1882 t.. Roche Lime Company was
organized. This lime was found to be
of superior quality and was eagerly
sought, but was only manufactured in
limited quantities at that time.
In 1887 the Tacoma Lime Company
which then controlled the PuyalluI
output, became interested in the Roche
Harbor enterprise, and soon came into
possession of it. The two companies
were consolidated, systematic improve
ments were at once begun looking tC
the manufacture of lime on q large
scale, and to-day the Tacoma and
Roche Harbor Lime Company would
not take a million dollars for its work.
on Roche Harbor.
The ledge is of solid marble, ex
tending from Roche Harbor to West
colt bay, a distance of more than 8
half mile, nearly thousand feet wide
and over two hundred and fifty feet
above the water. 1t will require more
than thousand years to consume the
rock above the waters edge, which
may be only q small section OF the en-
tire ledge. The stone lis tire aeares,
to pure lime Of any yet discovered ir
the United States, and contains Oyel
50 per cent. of carbonate of lime, witt
no sulphur whatever.
1t is the intention of the manage
men. to utilize everything above the
quarries, and allow nothing to be
wasted that can be turned into money
in any channel In the past, when
lime was being manufactured here
and there in small quantities, i'm
prevements were not so profitable,
but in large factory rs at Roche
Harbor, the saving of a few cents here
and there, few minutes time made
on an operation, nr turning some
thing to profit whic had previously
been thrown aside as useless, amounts
in year to thousands of dollars, and
the most successful manager is the
one ,;ho watches these points the
most closely in any undertaking. In
deed, American genius has seldom eX-
hibited itself in more practical way
| than in the numerous improvements
made in the manufacture of lime.
The spawls," as the broken
I'll, ~
heretofore been dumped to one side as
useless, but market has been found
for them at San Francisco, Oswego,
Or, and other points, and as soon as
the new bunkcrs, which are now in
course oi construction, are completed
they will all be shipped to market.
A systematic development of the
plant and quarry was begun by the
Tacoma Company as soon as they OBJ
tained the Roche Harbor works, and
every day sees improvements of an I'M
portant nature in progress. A new
dock has been built, which is $50 feet
long and has 66 feet frontage, on which
has been built commodious ware
house for storing the lime before ship
mcnt. A system of tracks are laid on
the lower floor of the immense works
which lead to the warehouse and horse
cars are used to carry out the filled
barrels of lime. Tracks with steel
rails have been laid from the quarry to
the kilns, on which the stone is carried
down in dump cars. The incline is
slight, and the two men who ride down
to dump the lime out of the car can
easily push it back to the quarry.
The Monitor kiln now in use at
Roche Harbor is a great improvement
over any heretofore in use. At the
bottom of the kiln is the foundation
arch, cooling receptacle and furnace,
above which is the kiln proper. This
consists of two thicknesses of fire brick
around which is a jacket of boiler iron.
A space of two inches between the fire
brick and the jacket is filled with
gravel. A kiln of this kind retains the
heat remarkably we'll. the outside be-
ing only slightly warmed. They are
supplied with sheet iron smokestacks
which increase the draft and heat
Each furnace holds about thirty tons
of rock and is provided with two fur
naces, on opposite sides. The furnaces,