Vermont Granite Museum
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The Vermont Granite Museum is a museum in the city of
Barre, Vermont Barre, Vermont may refer to: *Barre (city), Vermont *Barre (town), Vermont Barre ( ) is a New England town, town in Washington County, Vermont, Washington County, Vermont, United States. The population was 7,923 at the 2020 census, making it the 3r ...
, devoted to the city's historically important
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
quarrying and processing industry. It is located at 7 Jones Brothers Way, in the former Jones Brothers Granite Shed, a former granite processing facility listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
. The Stone Arts School, administered by the museum, is a teaching institution for aspiring sculptors.


Mission

The museum's mission is to preserve and interpret the history of Vermont's granite industry, an economically important element of Barre's economy since the late 19th century. It is open for tours between June and October, or by special arrangement at other times. Admission is charged. Under the moniker of the Stone Arts School, the museum offers workshops in which sculptors can learn historic and modern granite-working techniques.


Setting and building history

The museum is located northwest of downtown Barre, in the former Jones Brothers Granite Shed, set between North Main Street (
United States Route 302 U.S. Route 302 (US 302) is an east–west spur of U.S. Route 2 in northern New England in the United States. It currently runs from Montpelier, Vermont, beginning at US 2, to Portland, Maine, at U.S. Route 1. It passes through the states of Ver ...
) and the Stevens Branch of the
Winooski River The Winooski River (formerly the Onion River) is a tributary of Lake Champlain, approximately long, in the northern half of Vermont. Although not Vermont's longest river, it is one of the state's most significant, forming a major valley way from ...
. The shed, built in 1895, is an early example of a straight shed, which replaced the previously common horseshoe design. In this facility large blocks of granite were processed into finished products, primarily cemetery markers. Jones Brothers was founded in 1870, and was the oldest operating granite works in Vermont when it ceased operations in 1975. The shed is the principal surviving building of a once-larger complex of buildings on the site. The shed was acquired for museum use in 1997. with


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Vermont __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Vermont. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington County ...


References


External links


Vermont Granite Museum web site
{{authority control Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Vermont Buildings and structures completed in 1895 Museums in Washington County, Vermont Buildings and structures in Barre (city), Vermont Industry museums in Vermont Art museums and galleries in Vermont Granite National Register of Historic Places in Washington County, Vermont