C02 



STONE& 



throughout. Much of this stono has boon used in 

 San Francisco fur public buildings. In the Penryn 

 qnarry, near Sacramento, tin- granite splits so evenly 

 that blocks 100 feet long uiul of almost any thick- 

 ness can be readily obtained. Tlio colors are blue, 

 block, Rray, and other varieties of hue. Oregon and 

 Washington possess granitic building stones in 

 equal abundance. 



In close connection with the granites may be 

 iianiril tin- green serpentines, which huve been used 

 to a considerable extent in Philadelphia buildings, 

 being obtained from quarries in the vicinity of that 

 city. The most imposing stnictun>s in this material 

 re the buildings of the University of Pennsylvania. 

 In western North Carolina there is a very large de- 

 posit of serpentine, or vord antique, which is sold 

 under the name of green marble, poli -lies finely, 

 and is much vised for interior decoration. This is 

 the only extensive de|>osit of this stone in the Union. 



Tin 1 limestones suitable for building purposes com- 

 prise three classes, common limestone, gypsum, and 

 marble, the latter varying from coarse grades, which 

 shade into limestone, to the finest-grained marbles. 

 Of coarse marbles the most extensive deposit yet 

 opened lies in \Vostohester county, N. Y., just north 

 of the city. This has yielded nearly all the, building 

 marble used in New York Citythe university, the 

 lioman Catholic cathedral, and other imposing 

 buildings being constructed of it. At Lockport 

 exist extensive beds of a compact, soft, and easily 

 worked grayish limestone, which hardens when ex- 

 posed to the air. It is a handsome stone and has 

 been largely used, the Lenox Library building, New 

 York, bt>iii'_; an instance. 



North Carolina comes next to New York in the 

 possession of extensive beds of building limestone. 

 These occur in the mountain region of the west, 

 while on the coast "shell limestones," suitable for 

 building purposes, abound. East Tennessee j 

 an abundance of oolitic limestone, characterized by 

 minute round grains. This is very white, of excel- 

 lent quality, works easily, and wears well. In the 

 centre of the State are limestones nearly as hard as 

 marble, of which the State capitol at Nashville has 

 been built. West of the Mississippi extensive beds 

 of limestone suitable for building occur in Missouri, 

 Iowa, Kansas, and Nebraska, while in Iowa is a bed 

 of solid gypsum which extends for 5 miles along tho 

 I lines river, and has been quarried and used 

 for building. Montana. Wyoming, and Colorado urn 

 similarly well supplied, the Jefferson Company's 

 quarries in the latter State being practically inex- 

 haustible. On the Pacific slope, limestones exist 

 abundantly, but not of quality well suited for build- 

 ing purposes. 



M .rides suitable for building are quite as widely 

 distributed. The finest quality of American marble 

 yet discovered is that of Vermont, being a portion of 

 a continuous belt which extends from the coarse 

 marbles of We.stchester county, N. Y., across Ver- 

 mont into Canada. The finest grades occur within 

 30 miles north and south of Rutland, Vt., tho mar- 

 bles here being of flne texture and pure white color. 

 The veins of the finer material are nowhere very 

 large, and it being more liable, with greater parity, 

 to crack and splinter in quarrying, it is now got out 

 by sawing instead of blasting. Ingenious machines 

 drive peculiarly shaped saws, often with black dia- 

 mond-pointed teeth, that cot channels into the rock. 

 The deposits are practically inexhaustible, the mar- 

 ble being delicate in texture, some white enough for 

 statuary, and all polishing finely. It is largely em- 

 ployed for furniture and interior decorations. 



The southern Alh-^hanies possess vast deposits of 

 marble, of tine texture and almost every shade of 

 color; western North Carolina having beds of white, 

 pink, black, gray, drab, and mottled, all susceptible, 



1 of a fine polish. Opposite these, in eastern Tonnos- 



. ale extensive beds "f very handsome marl 

 often beautifully variegated in color. These havo 

 I used extensively for interior finish in cx|x-n- 

 sive private dwellings, and largely for steps and 

 staircase wainscoting in hotels anil other largo pub- 

 lic buildings. The colored '!'< nnessoo marbles have, 

 In .11 used in tin 1 interior decoration of the Capitol 

 at Washington, and in the governor's room of tho 

 Albany capitol building. 



In (ieorgia exists much the largest bed of nmiblo 

 yet discovered in the Union. This maible is of uni- 

 formly line texture, tho color varying from white to 

 variegated, some of the latter varieties being of great 

 beauty. Tho marble area of North ('arc, lira. T. n- 

 . and Georgia is greatly the most extensive in 



i the Union, audits material the most diversified in 

 character. In Iowa is a peculiar deposit ki:own us 



! coral marble, one of its constituents being a 



' coral or sponge, which shows itself in delicate tiae- 

 n (lie marble when polished. It is greatly va- 

 ried in hue, tho foundation color being mostly gray 

 or drab, and the beds are practically inexhaustible. 



Missouri is well provided with excellent marbles, 

 one variety known as onyx marble being extensively 

 used for mantels, fine furniture, etc. Montana, 

 Wyoming, and Colorado ore well supplied, whilo 

 Oregon and Washington have rich deposits, 

 but little developed. Undeveloped beds also exist 

 in New Mexico and Arizona. 



Yet more important than the granites and lime- 

 stones for building purposes are the sand- 

 which are very largely employed in tho fronts of 

 private residences. When of good quality these, 

 stones will resist the effects of heat and cold, dry- 

 ness and moisture. They are used ordinarily, ou 

 account of their cost, as a sort of v -er for house- 

 fronts, being applied in thin slabs backed up with 

 brick. Sandstones differ very coiisideiably in con- 

 stitution, Home being silicious, some granitic, others 



[ argillacions, etc. They differ as greatly in degree of 

 compactness and in color, tho principal shades being 

 brown, diab, and bluish. The sandstones are tho 

 most widely and generally diffused and most diverse 

 in texture, compactness, and color of all building 

 stones. They usually occur in deposits of moderate 

 extent, but so numerous and scattered ns to bo 

 i v. i -\ w In <re available. East of the Alleghanics tho 

 two most important deposits are those in the valley 

 of the Connecticut river, and near lielloullo, N. Y. 

 Those beds are of immense extent, and have snp- 

 plied building stones to tho. adjacent cities and vil- 

 x. for move than one-third of a century. In Ul- 

 ster county, N. Y., are extensive bods of a very hard 

 blue-stone, which is much used for steps, sills, etc., 

 and at Potsdam a deposit of very hard and durable 

 stone, of reddish color with veins of gray. 



Tho Southern Atlantic States have numerous small 

 deposits of building sandstones, whilo in eastern 

 Tennessee they occur largely. The States bordering 

 tho Mississippi and Ohio are very well provided, 

 and the same is tho case with tho Rocky Mountain 

 and the Pacific slope region. The colors vary 

 greatly, there being shades of drab and blue, bluo 

 with gray tint, pure gray, greenish-gray, white, red, 

 and quite dark. Vast quantities of these stones are 

 used in building. 



The slate quarries of the United States chiefly 

 in Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, and 

 Maine. Tho first named of these States yields moro 

 than all the others combined, its largest quarries 

 being on the Lehigh river in tho vicinity of Allen- 

 town. This slate is of fine texture, and is well 

 adapted for roofing and other uses. The New York 

 and Vermont de]x)sits are continuous with each 

 other. Their slates are of excellent quality and are 

 employed largely to imitate variegated marbles, be- 



