Vermont
Marble Exhibit
Fact
Sheet
Contact: Glenn Faria
Michael Patrick Destinations & Communications
396 Main Street, Suite #3, Hyannis, MA 02601-3900
508-790-0566 F 508-790-0565
www.mpdcltd.com glenn@mpdcltd.com
Vermont Marble Exhibit
Overview: Vermont Marble Exhibit, the showpiece of the Vermont Marble Company, is the largest and most unique marble exhibit of its kind in the world. Comprising 27,000 square feet of exhibit space featuring 100 different exhibits in 17 rooms and exhibit halls, the Vermont Marble Exhibit has no equal anywhere. The Vermont Marble Company was founded by Colonel Redfield Proctor (after whom the town is named). Proctor, an ambitious and wily politician, used his considerable persuasive talents and Senatorial influence to ensure that a number of structures, most notably the United States Supreme Court Building and Jefferson Memorial, both in Washington, D.C., were constructed of Vermont marble.
Vermont marble is extracted from Dorset Mountain, near Danby, the largest underground marble quarry in the world. The qualities of the 400-million year old rock are advertised in an extravagant marble bridge in Proctor. More famous examples of its use for building are the Beinike Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University in New Haven, CT and the United Nations Building in New York, to name but a few of thousands of structures for which the main component is marble.
Beneath part of the valley running from Dorset to Brandon, VT lie virtually all of New England’s commercial marble deposits. Marble is limestone which heat and pressure deep within the earth have transformed from its usually dull, lusterless state into a sparkling crystalline substance. Vermont is the second largest marble producer in the United States with virtually all of its marble coming from the limestone valley and Champlain Lowland. From Route 7 it is possible to see a number of quarries and prospect pits throughout this part of Vermont. Large quarries still operate in Danby, West Rutland and Proctor. Pure marble is snow white; its various colors and patterns are caused by small amounts of impurities. Even within Vermont, there are great differences in color of marble from one locality to another. For example, quarries at Danby produce a pure, snow-white marble; at Proctor, the marble has gray bands; a beautiful black marble was once quarried on the Isle la Motte in Lake Champlain. Other Vermont quarries have produced both green and red marbles.
Location: Located in Proctor in central Vermont at 52 Main Street, Vermont Marble Exhibit is readily accessible from major travel routes in Vermont and the northeast (see table below).
Distances from Vermont Marble Exhibit:
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Facility: The facility comprises a 27,000-square foot structure and includes the following exhibit halls, rooms or exhibits:
Lobby: This lobby is completely made of marble and also
contains an intriguing sculpture which was left, many years ago,
at Vermont Marble to be repaired. The owner never returned
to collect the repaired sculpture and significant efforts were
made to locate the rightful owner, without success. No information
is available about either its owner(s), value, or sculptor. The
Exhibit has now obtained legal ownership of the piece.
Theatre Introduction: The Legacy of Marble, the Exhibit’s
eleven-minute film introduces visitors to the Vermont Marble
Company, its turn of the century
immigrant workforce and present direction of the marble industry.
The film is
shown continuously in the Exhibit’s comfortable theater.
Marble Chapel: The Exhibit displays the virtues of marble
in the form of a
marble chapel, built in 1934, replete with pews and altar. The
Chapel contains a diminutive relief of The Last Supper
carved by Italian sculptor T. Tonelli in Proctor in the 1950s,
which is displayed here along with numerous other items showing
many varieties of marble which are no longer quarried. Replicas
of The Last Supper were commissioned by churches all over
the United States.
Hall of Presidents: This handsome hall, which represents a 25-year project to honor our nation’s leaders, presents beautiful life-size bas-relief busts (carved from Vermont Danby white marble and Vermont Statuary white marble from West Rutland) of each American president. As our presidents change regularly every four or eight years, the Hall of Presidents is truly a work in progress. President George W. Bush, Jr.’s likeness is presently being sculpted.
Government Headstones: On display are several different styles of headstones which were produced by the thousands for government cemeteries—burial grounds for American soldiers—around the United States, including Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.
Geology Exhibit—Earth Alive: (In Progress) This exhibit, for children and adults, is ready to explore, bringing to life the evolution of our planet Earth. The hands-on exhibit essentially brings the history, evolution and geologic formation of our planet ‘to life,’ explaining Earth’s geological evolution with a 160-foot dramatic wall mural depicting the evolution of Earth from a bubbling cauldron of magma to the life-friendly environment we know today. Visitors can experience the formation of geological phenomenon with hands-on exhibits. A 160-foot long mural depicts, in bold graphics and three-dimensional images, Earth’s composition, planetary relationships, volcanic eruptions, cave environments and more. This exhibit room also features the origin of the Earth, geologic and paleontological exhibits, a timeline of evolution and even a faux cave which can be lit with various types of lighting to highlight the chemical composition and molecular structure of the exhibited rocks.
There is also an Educational Center with workstations (which are being significantly expanded) to offer additional interactive opportunities. Dr. Rock is always available for school groups and bus tour groups.
A special exhibit—Raymond the
Triceratops—within this room is described
below.
‘Raymond:’ This reconstructed excavation site features a
resin casting of a
triceratops skeleton, named ‘Raymond,’ which
is shown buried in its original position in which it died about
65 million years ago. Raymond was discovered in 1994 by a small
fossil collector in North Dakota. Using discovery’s privilege,
the discoverer named the fossil Raymond, after his son.
The fossil was taken out of the ground
very carefully and in four large and
many small pieces. The original triceratops is presently
on exhibition in the
Tokyo National Museum. This particular triceratops
is quite unique in that it
was found ‘articulated,” which means each of its skeleton’s
bones was in its
correct anatomical position. This is extremely rare and few dinosaur
skeletons
and fossils are found articulated. The discovery and subsequent
study of
Raymond made it possible to deduce how triceratops moved—as
reptiles or
rhinoceros. Paleontologists confirmed that triceratops,
in fact, moved like
rhinoceros, meaning that all previously existing triceratops’
skeletal reconstructions throughout the world were actually incorrect.
Sculpting Workshop: This space is available for use by sculptors or artists needing temporary space for marble sculpting.
Theatre Lobby: Here visitors can view photographs of past presidents
of the
Vermont Marble Company, three of which were governors
of the State of Vermont.
Geological/Historical Exhibit: This room features many compelling and
revealing photographs of both early and contemporary methods
of mining
marble. This exhibit highlights the history of Vermont Marble
Company
and its various quarrying techniques. Vermont Marble Company
employed a
photographer to document the period from 1890-1935. These historical
photographs accompany the story of marble. Geographical information
and
quarrying techniques are exhibited here.
Sculptor & Gallery—Sculptor
in Residence: The painstaking
process of carving marble is demonstrated by the Exhibit’s
“sculptor in residence.” Visitors can watch—and
sometimes help—marble being shaped before their very eyes
from raw stone into works of art. Sculpture may be purchased
or commissioned.
Vermont Marble Office: Circa 1870, original office furniture and equipment
which includes the original “punch clock” and a “library’
of marble samples.
Marbles of the World: Located in a large room, this exhibit provides
many
examples of marble from around the world. The samples are actually
large
panels of marble, from the powder puff Champion Pink marble mined
in
Tennessee to the terra cotta-colored Ramello Rosso marble from
Italy. Many
specimens of marble feature stunning “veining,” while
others comprise both
marble and actual small fossils which were originally embedded
in the soft
materials which eventually formed the stone. Marble exists in
myriad colors
and, even within the same mine and vein, color will differ markedly.
Visitors can discern the difference in
this intriguing display hall. Originally
erected at the marble industry’s zenith as a showroom for
prospective customers, marble, limestone and granite panels are
displayed in full size.
For researchers and architects, the original ‘stone library’
from the Vermont
Marble Company is available for to perusal. More than 100
varieties of stone
from around the globe are showcased in large panel displays.
Marble today is used as an ingestible
filler in such products as lipstick, facial
skin products, toothpaste and chewing gum as well as in other
products such
as paint and paper. These lines of business are pursued in concert
with OMYA, the on-site mineral products company.
Marble Kitchen &
Bathroom: The contemporary
use of stone is found here. In the bath display Vermont Montclair
Danby Marble is used for the floor tiles and counter tops. The
walls are Vermont Verde Marble, a serpentine marble with hardness
resembling granite. These marbles and many granites are available
for custom orders. Visitors can build lifelong beauty and durability
into their homes and save considerably through buying marble
and other stone direct ‘from the factory.’ No other
material can surpass the timeless elegance and durability of
marble or granite counter tops and floors.
To maintain the beauty of marble and other
stone surfaces, Vermont Marble
Company has assembled a comprehensive guide to the care and
cleaning of
stone surfaces. The staff can assist in planning for projects
and in the selection from a variety of 7/8” or 1¼”
thick polished countertop marble stock (edge treatments are available).
Prospective purchasers can e-mail info@vermont-marble.com
with job specifications for free estimates.
US Supreme Court Mock-up: This remarkable ‘mock-up’ of the proposed US Supreme Court Building was created by Vermont Marble Company for the architect of the US Capitol between 1932-1934 to induce him to select the Company to supply the stone for this Washington landmark building.The marble used was Danby Imperial White, Vermont Verdoso and Dark Rutland.
Immigrant History: This new and expanded exhibit will be installed this year and will feature a pictorial history of the immigrants who emigrated to Proctor from Ellis Island to work at the Vermont Marble Company. These Immigrants—from all over the world—were met on New York’s Ellis Island’s docks and were immediately recruited. These immigrants and their contribution to our country are highlighted. Many of these immigrants’ descendants visit the Museum regularly, representing a significant percentage of the Museum’s attendance. Such visitors are also often able—and are welcome—to research their ancestry within the Exhibit’s archives.
Cafe: This congenial self-serve cafe, within the Exhibit itself, is adjacent to the Gift Shop (see below). Here visitors can refresh themselves with coffee, tea and other soft drinks and snacks.
Gift Shop: Marble and stone products from around the world are sold here.
Outdoor Marble Market: As you leave the Exhibit, visitors can browse through marble and stone from around the world. Pieces can be cut to size for a nominal fee.
New Exhibits
for 2001: Marble in the
Third Milennium: New Uses for Calcium Carbonate
Admission: Tickets for the Exhibit can be purchased on-site or can be purchased in advance on-line. On-line ticket purchases qualify for a special reduced rate (see table below). Alternately, tickets can be purchased via telephone on 800-427-1396. Simply place the order and a confirmation number will be issued. Upon arrival at the Exhibit, tickets will be waiting at the admission desk. Admission tickets can purchased with MasterCard, Visa and Discover cards.
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Tour Bus
Rates: Telephone 800-427-1396
for bus rates and reservations
Resident
Rates: Vermont Marble Exhibit
offers Vermont residents a special GeoPass, entitling
them to admission to the Exhibit and Earth Alive Geology
Exhibit for one full year. The GeoPass is $5.00 per
family, or $1.00 per individual.
2001 Season
and Hours: Season:
May 14th to October 28th, 2001
Hours:
9am to 5:30pm seven days a week
Gift Shop: The Exhibit’s satellite gift store
is open year round, seven days a week and is located at the Diamond
Run Mall on Route 7 South in Rutland. It features a variety
of geological gifts. Telephone 802-775-3435 for information and
directions.
Key
Personnel: Robert Pye, Exhibit
Manager
Patricia Lesnick, Gift Shop Manager
Joyce Pratt, Administration
Allen Dwight, Sculptor-in-Residence
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52 Main Street, Post Office Box 607, Proctor, VT 802-459-2300 or 800-427-1396 www.vermont-marble info@vermont-marble.com 52 Main Street Proctor, VT 05765 Phone 802-459-2200 Fax 802-459-2948 |
Carl Schilling Stoneworks is the building stone division of Vermont
Marble Exhibit. It is a separate entity and contracts building
stone work all over the United States as well as through Hemm
GmbH in Kirchheim, Germany. The company contracts building
stone for many American universities and notable buildings, including
the US Presidential Guest House and the German Embassy.
Carl Schilling was the original owner of this German factory
which later became Hemm GmbH. Schilling’s original
company performed restoration work starting in the 1800s.
