Gantts Quarry

Gantt Quarry was a marble quarry near Sylacauga in Talladega County.

The quarry was opened in the early 1840s by Dr Edward Gantt, who employed ox teams to haul slabs 9 miles to a landing on the Coosa River. He abandoned the operation in the late 1850s, unable to successfully recoup his costs without rail service.

Washington Monument Commemorative Stones

Two 2-foot by 4-foot blocks of marble from Gantt Quarry were sent to the Washington National Monument Society for installation inside the massive obelisk proposed to memorialize President George Washington, in response to the Society's resolution that, "its material is intended to be wholly American, and to be of marble and granite brought from each state, that each state may participate in the glory of contributing material as well as in funds to its construction."

One was sent by the State of Alabama at the order of Governor Henry Collier. It was carved with raised block letters reading, "Alabama. A Union of Equality, as adjusted by the Constitution."

The other was donated by the Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Ancient Free & Accepted Masons of the State of Alabama. It was inscribed with a dedication dated "Dec. 6 A.L. 5849" (Anno Lucis 5849 as dated from the day God first created light, corresponding to A.D. 1849) and decorated with a masonic emblem.

Both stones were carved by J. M. N. B. Nix & Co. of Wetumpka, Elmore County and displayed at the state penitentiary there before being sent to Washington D.C. via the Port of Mobile. The blocks were received on August 6, 1850 and installed in the Washington Monument. The Alabama block was installed at the 40-foot level, and the Grand Lodge block at the 140-foot level.

Alabama Marble & Stone Co.

The quarry was purchased in the late 1890s by Amos Mylin and Alexander King of Pennsylvania with Dr George A. Hill of Talladega County. They formed the Alabama Marble & Stone Co. in 1899, with newspaper publisher and Mayor Frank Evans of Birmingham as a major shareholder. The partners obtained modern quarrying equipment, arranged for a rail spur from the Alabama Mineral Railroad, and constructed housing and other facilities. To promote the venture, they removed large specimens of marble to be exhibited around the country. One such block— displayed in Alabama's exhibit at the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, New York— was compared favorably to the best marble from Carrara, Italy or Paros, Greece, and reportedly generated much interest from sculptors visiting the fair.

References

• "Equal to Carrara is Alabama Marble" (July 28, 1901) The Birmingham Age-Herald, p. 15
• Jacob, Judith M. (2005) "The Washington Monument A Technical History and Catalog of the Commemorative Stones" National Park Service, U.S. Department of Interior