Poultney in Rutland County, Vermont — The American Northeast (New England)

The Vermont Slate Industry

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., July 30, 2023

1. The Vermont Slate Industry Marker

Inscription.
Slate was first discovered in 1839 and later worked by Col. Alonson Allen at the Scotch Hill Quarry near Fair Haven in 1848. The Hooker brothers opened the Poultney Eureka Quarry in 1851. At the peak in the 1890's there were more than 80 quarries in Vermont alone, employing over 500 workers.

Roofing is the predominant use of quarried slate; other uses include hand carved fireplace surrounds, countertops, farm sinks, floor tile, patio tile, stair treads and artwork.

Immigrants from Wales, Ireland, Italy, Poland and Slavic countries began arriving in the 1860's, drawn to the work they had known in Europe. Their cultures, songs, religions and intellect transformed a sparsely settled area into a thriving series of small communities in the Slate Valley.

Today's quarries and mills echo the stories and tragedies of those
early workers who carried their mallets, chisels and lunch buckets to work every day.
——————————————————————
"Be still and listen to the voices
that belong to the streambanks
and the trees and the open fields.
There are songs and sayings
that belong to this place,
by which it speaks for itself and no other."
Wendell Berry

Erected 2021 by the Slate Quarry Park Group.

Topics. This historical

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marker is listed in these topic lists: Immigration • Industry & Commerce. A significant historical year for this entry is 1839.

Location. 43° 31.053′ N, 73° 14.057′ W. Marker is in Poultney, Vermont, in Rutland County. Marker is on Main Street west of Grove Street (Vermont Route 30), on the right when traveling west. Marker is in Slate Quarry Park. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 76 Main Street, Poultney VT. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 76 Main Street, Poultney VT 05764, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Chiseled In Stone (here, next to this marker); Poultney Transportation Highlights (within shouting distance of this marker); War Memorial (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Old Stone Church (approx. 0.2 miles away); Jeffrey Brace (approx. 1½ miles away); Horace Greeley - George Jones (approx. 1.6 miles away); Site of Oldest Union Church in America (approx. 1.8 miles away); Poultney Civil War Monument (approx. 1.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Poultney.

Also see . . . Vermont’s Slate Industry (Poultney Historical Society). (Submitted on August 1, 2023, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)

Slate Quarry Park Poem image. Click for full size.

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., July 30, 2023

2. Slate Quarry Park Poem

The Vermont Slate Industry and Poem Markers image. Click for full size.

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., July 30, 2023

3. The Vermont Slate Industry and Poem Markers

Slate Quarry Park image. Click for full size.

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., July 30, 2023

4. Slate Quarry Park

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., July 30, 2023

5. Slate Quarry Park

Highlighting different slate colors

Photographed By William Fischer, Jr., July 30, 2023

6. Slate Quarry Park

Credits. This page was last revised on August 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on August 1, 2023, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 63 times since then and 24 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on August 1, 2023, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.