Cape Ann Granite / Paul St. Germain.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

St. Germain, Paul, author.

Series:

Images of America.

Images of America

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Granite industry and trade--Massachusetts--Essex County--History--Pictorial works.

Granite industry and trade.

Quarries and quarrying--Massachusetts--Essex County--History--Pictorial works.

Quarries and quarrying.

Essex County (Mass.)--History--Pictorial works.

Essex County (Mass.).

Ann, Cape (Mass.)--History--Pictorial works.

Ann, Cape (Mass.).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (127 pages) : illustrations.

Place of Publication:

Charleston, South Carolina : Arcadia Publishing, [2015]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

The granite industry began on Cape Ann with the first sale of a piece of Rockport granite, for use as a millstone, to a farmer in Newburyport in 1800. The industry would grow to include more than 60 quarries and operations around the cape, becoming the second-largest economic force in the area behind fishing. Hundreds were employed as quarrymen, stonecutters, paving cutters, and finishers. Cape Ann was particularly well fitted for the pursuit of granite as its rocky hills and shores afforded a comparatively inexhaustible source of supply, and its splendid shipping facilities gave the advantage of quick and economical transportation to market by sea and land. The industry eventually declined, and by 1930, most quarries had gone out of business because of labor strikes and low demand. Today, most of these quarries are filled with rainwater and springwater, and many are used as reservoirs for the surrounding communities.

Contents:

Bay View quarries

Lanesville quarries

Pigeon Cove quarries

Rockport quarries

The quarrymen

The tools

The stone ships

The final product

Granite on Cape Ann.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references (page 126).

ISBN:

9781439652435

1439652430