Indiana Limestone (1)

Indiana Limestone is considered to be the highest quality limestone quarried in the United States and not surprisingly it was used in the construction of some of Terre Haute's most prestigious buildings. The main source is in the area between Bloomington and Bedford in south central Indiana, which gives the stone its other common name of Bedford Limestone though its more correct name is Salem limestone.

Salem limestone, like all limestone, is a rock primarily formed of calcium carbonate. The limestone was deposited over millions of years as marine fossils decomposed at the bottom of a shallow inland sea which covered most of the present-day Midwestern United States during the Early Carboniferous or Mississippian Period which lasted for 40 million years, from 359 to 318 million years ago.

Although used by Native Americans and early settlers, the first large scale quarrying started in 1827, and by 1929, 340,000 cubic metres (12 million cubic feet) were being extracted. Salem limestone was officially designated as the "state stone" of Indiana by the Indiana General Assembly in 1971. Nowadays, nearly 76,500 cubic metres (2.7 million cubic feet) of Indiana Limestone is quarried each year generating about $26 million annually in revenue. The limestone deposit is approximately 45 miles long, between 2 and 14 miles wide and between 25 and 100 feet thick. This means that there are approximately 19,000 million cubic metres (660,000 milliom cubic feet) in the deposit, which at a density of 2,306 kg per cubic metre (144 lbs per cubic foot) is equal to 44,000 million metric tons, also spelled tonnes, (48,000,000 million short tons (2,000 lbs) or 43,000 million long tons (2,240 lbs)). At the current rate of extraction the deposit should last around 250,000 years!

The Indiana Limestone Deposit

Whilst collecting the Terre Haute postcards I've come across several fine postcards of the quarrying of Indiana Limestone and these are included here as another facet of Terre Haute's architectural history.

Natural stone steps - P. M. & B. Quarry, Bedford, Indiana

P. M. & B. Quarry, Bedford, Indiana

The P. M. & B. quarry is owned by the Indiana Limestone Company. It was from this quarry that limestone was extracted from the "Empire Hole" to provide the limestone for the Empire State Building which was opened in 1931. The "Empire Hole" was also the source of the limestone for the building's major 2001 renovations.

Indiana Limestone Quarry, Bedford

The text on the postcard says "This scene of the Indiana Limestone Company, the largest limestone company in the world, was taken at the north edge of Oolitic. It shows the Joiner Mill in the background, large stacks of huge blocks of stone and water reservoir at the Walsh Quarry. The water is used in the mills. Some of the blocks of stone weigh as much as 25 tons."

Indiana Limestone Quarry

The text on the postcard says "Beautiful Bedford Stone comes from quarries like this. Located one-half mile North of Oolitic, Indiana." Oolitic is 3.5 miles north west of Bedford.

Indiana Limestone Quarry, Bedford

The text on the postcard says "This scene is of the P. M. & B. Quarry of the Indiana Limestone Company, the largest limestone company in the world. The channeling machines are both electric and steam powered. The steam comes from a centrally located gas fired boiler. The machines are cutting huge blocks of stone."

Indiana Limestone Quarry

The text on the postcard says "A quarry scene near Bedford, Indiana, in the world's largest limestone belt."

This page created 11th June 2008, last modified 9th July 2008