Granite or Sandy Loam?? (Ellsworth, China: for sale, employment, camping)

[People-of-the-North]

This question is directed primarily to Acadianlion, although anyone who knows the answer would be welcome to reply.

Acadianlion, you mentioned that yours is one of the seven active quarries in Maine.
Could you give a list of the name and location of the seven quarries?
I am having a surprising degree of difficulty in locating them.
Also, are there any active slate quarries in Maine?
I can not seem to find any source online giving such information.

I expect to be undertaking some stone building-projects in northern Maine [nothing fancy; just some walls and such], and will need a source of stone. Probably granite tailings you mentioned in a previous post would do, although I do expect to eventually undertake larger projects requiring some large, rough granite posts/slabs.

Thanks much.

[forest beekeeper]

He was talking about granite quarries.

There are a bunch of other quarries, gravel, stone, sand, etc, through out Maine.

A half dozen are near me.

[Acadianlion]

Originally Posted by People-of-the-North

This question is directed primarily to Acadianlion, although anyone who knows the answer would be welcome to reply.

Acadianlion, you mentioned that yours is one of the seven active quarries in Maine.
Could you give a list of the name and location of the seven quarries?
I am having a surprising degree of difficulty in locating them.
Also, are there any active slate quarries in Maine?
I can not seem to find any source online giving such information.

I expect to be undertaking some stone building-projects in northern Maine [nothing fancy; just some walls and such], and will need a source of stone. Probably granite tailings you mentioned in a previous post would do, although I do expect to eventually undertake larger projects requiring some large, rough granite posts/slabs.

Thanks much.

There are seven active, licensed commercial granite quarries in Maine. Only three are owned by Maine people. The quarry locations and their granite names are: two granite quarries in the Jonesboro area owned by Fletcher Granite Company from Massachusetts (Mining Englishman's Bay and Jonesboro Red granite). Crotch Island quarry is owned by a large granite corporation based in Rhose Island (mining Deer Isle granite). The quarry in Stonington is owned by a Mainer (mining another color but much like Deer Isle), as is Mosquito Mountain near Frankfort, mining Fresh Water and owned by Fresh Water Granite; and Silver Star, mined by Sullivan Stoneworks.

There are several slate quarries in the central part of Maine, and numerous sand and gravel pits located throughout the state.

The common denominator of all of these operations is the regulatory thread that binds us all: we are all primarily regulated by the US Department of Labor, through the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Mining is licensed and also regulated by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

Undertaking stone building projects is relatively easy to undertake anywhere in Maine, provided enough lead time is allowed for the stone to be cut properly. Making retaining walls is a bit more complicated than one might think, as the stone must be cut and shaped to some extent to properly mate to the stone beneath and on either side of it. Merely piling stone upon stone won't yield much result by itself. A wall four feet tall will need to have a strong base of crushed stone that is quite deep...frost depth is ideal...and carefully compacted. 3/4 minus stone is about what needs to be used. Once this bed is placed, the stone of the wall can be laid. If it is to be a granite wall, then granite will need to be cut in lengths and shaped so that they will fit within 1/2 inch or so over their length so that the earth in back...if a retaining wall...will not merely sift through. If the wall is to be free standing, then the base course of stone members will have to be wider than the top course of members so that the weight of the top coarse won't tend to tumble the stone. If the wall is to be four feet tall, and it is desired to have two or three courses of stone, the base and each course will be somewhat wider than the height of each course. If a wall four feet tall was to be built out of one piece of stone, then each piece would be at least three feet wide by four feet tall by whatever length was desired, and the crushed stone base would be four and one half feet wide minimum by the frost depth. Remember, granite is between 160 and 190 pounds per cubic foot, so the weight is enormous and once things start to roll nothing will stop them.

A wall made of random stone will have a wide base also, and the entire wall will taper to the top course for stability. If the wall...regardless of what kind of stone it is made...is a retaining wall, then there will be some degree of "back batter" so that the wall is leaning against the load being retained.

[Maineah]

There is a man in Yarmouth cutting granite in his back yard. He lives on.... ready....Granite Street. Really! His prices are good and so is his granite.

[Acadianlion]

I'd like to see that. If he is mining stone from beds in the ground, then he is damaging the industry.

[stevenlear]

Good afternoon AcadianLion.

I am back and forth through Sullivan every day traveling from Bangor to Gouldsboro and back. I am in the process of doing a fair amount of work in my yard and am constantly looking for stone. I notice in the 2 pictures you posted previously, a lot of small pieces laying about on the ground. Do you sell these stones? Would you love someone to take a few loads out of your way? Let me know if you would please, I appreciate it.

Thanks,
Steve

[Maineah]

You really don't want to be too near exposed granite outcroppings if you are on a well. The exposed grainte will allow rain water to directly enter the water table without the benefit of being "filtered" through the earth. We have several granite out croppings in our yard and have to filter our water because of it.

[RANGER.101ST]

Originally Posted by People-of-the-North

This question is directed primarily to Acadianlion, although anyone who knows the answer would be welcome to reply.

Acadianlion, you mentioned that yours is one of the seven active quarries in Maine.
Could you give a list of the name and location of the seven quarries?
I am having a surprising degree of difficulty in locating them.
Also, are there any active slate quarries in Maine?
I can not seem to find any source online giving such information.

I expect to be undertaking some stone building-projects in northern Maine [nothing fancy; just some walls and such], and will need a source of stone. Probably granite tailings you mentioned in a previous post would do, although I do expect to eventually undertake larger projects requiring some large, rough granite posts/slabs.

Thanks much.

the only active slate quarrie in maine atleast i think its still active is kennady slate in monson me

[Bandit]

Hi Acadianlion
I was wondering if You allow visitors to the Quarry ?
We try to camp for a week in Northport near the end of the Summer , and I would like to stop by and see Your Slotliner .
I rebuilt the Air Compressors at Rock of Ages a few years ago during there X-Mass shutdown . While I was running them in to test them , I got the .50 cent tour of the whole mountain , what an operation .
I was also in a Quarry off Rt. 7 in Vt. where they had cables running all over the floor on pulleys , they said they used them to cut the granite . I didn't get to see them working , something about No Air , and all the production workers went home .
Bob

[Acadianlion]

Originally Posted by Bandit

Hi Acadianlion
I was wondering if You allow visitors to the Quarry ?
We try to camp for a week in Northport near the end of the Summer , and I would like to stop by and see Your Slotliner .
I rebuilt the Air Compressors at Rock of Ages a few years ago during there X-Mass shutdown . While I was running them in to test them , I got the .50 cent tour of the whole mountain , what an operation .
I was also in a Quarry off Rt. 7 in Vt. where they had cables running all over the floor on pulleys , they said they used them to cut the granite . I didn't get to see them working , something about No Air , and all the production workers went home .
Bob

Sure. We're a very small operation, and as I am writing this, we are in a major change phase. I may end up being bought out and if so I will be able only to direct your inquiry to the new owners. I won't know exactly what the timing or schedule will be for a while, but the "end of the summer" might work. I am not sure whether the new owners will even keep the Slot Liner, but I would assume so, and I am also not certain whether the Slot Liner will be in use or just sitting there toward the latter months of the summer. Right now the schedule is to operate the Slot Liner in October for two weeks, but that could change.

Drop me a line in early August and I'll let you know what is happening.