Welcome to the
Volume 1
Central Vermont
Granite:
See & Do eGuide
Stone for the Ages
A building material, an artistic
medium, an industry that drew
immigrants from Europe to
grow a city and build a future.
Granite capital of the world.
Barre, Vermont
Published by:
Central Vermont
Chamber of Commerce
www.central-vt.com
802-229-5712
Central Vermont
The beauty of the Green Mountains belies the buzz
of activity tucked in the region’s hills and valleys.
Central Vermont boasts the smallest state capital in
the nation, and the “Granite Capital of the World”
along with two dozen nearby cities and towns.
Don’t look for Disneyland, and don’t expect to find
billboards pointing the way. Central Vermont must
be explored to be fully appreciated.
Central Vermont does things on a human scale.
Here you are a guest, not a number. Relax. Enjoy.
Elements of the region’s heritage like granite,
recreation, history, specialty foods, art, and
agriculture stretch from town to town. They are
interwoven in a tapestry of life that residents are
happy to share.
Use this guide to experience the industry that made
Barre, Vermont the destination of immigrants from
Canada and much of Europe. Immerse yourself in
granite as you discover Central Vermont.
Granite
Contents
Granite Quarry Tour
Barre Sculptures
Granite Museum
Hope Cemetery
Millstone Trails
___________________________
Barre, Vermont
Granite capital of the world.
Rock of Ages Granite Quarry
It has taken more than 100 years of drilling,
blasting, and lifting to create the largest
deep-hole granite quarry in the world.
Visitors are invited to the rim to peer into a
27-acre hole with 600-foot walls of stone.
The founders of Rock of Ages entered the
granite business in the mid-1880s, and
selected the Rock of Ages name in 1914.
Word of the stone and the site spread
quickly, and by 1925 the quarry was
drawing visitors to Barre Vermont.
“Barre Gray” granite is prized for
construction and monuments worldwide
because its high density prevents cracking
and discoloration. It is the most enduring
granite in the world.
Rock of Ages has expanded its visitors
center several times since hosting its first
More
tourists. The welcome center now houses a
movie theater showing the history of
granite, and a variety of granite displays
and gifts.
The adjacent manufacturing plant has a
visitors’ observation deck overlooking the
cutting and sandblasting
operations, and the
grounds boast the
world’s only granite
bowling alley.
Manufacturing plant
tours, exhibits, and
movie theater are free.
View a 2-minute video.
Fee for guided quarry
tours. Tour schedule,
open hours, prices.
Quaint family
dining in the
heart of the
Granite City
321 N. Main St., Barre, VT
802-479-9862
Barre Granite Sculptures
The bookends for Barre’s
downtown district are the
Robert Burns Memorial at the
east edge and the ItalianAmerican Monument at the
west. In between, Youth
Triumphant stands guard in
Robert
City Park.
Burns
Carved of locally quarried gray
granite by Barre residents who were and are
the nation’s finest sculptors, each of them is
worthy of a place of honor in America’s
largest cities.
Yet, all three are located within a few
blocks of each other along Route 302, the
state highway through Barre, Vermont, a
city of fewer than 10,000 residents.
Only the “Granite Capital of the World”
More
could boast three memorials of
such magnitude.
Scottish immigrants came to
Barre in the 1890’s and they
honored their homeland’s
greatest poet by erecting the
Burns Monument in 1899.
Youth
Triumphant
In 1924, Youth Triumphant was
erected in memory of those who served in
World War I.
The city’s Italian families,
another large segment of
immigrants and stone artisans,
erected the Italian-American
Monument in 1985. The apronclad figure of a sculptor with
chisel and hammer is 23-feet
Italian
high and weighs 43 tons.
American
Fresh Roasted Coffee from
The Heart of Vermont
Wholesome breakfast & lunch items
from local partners
27 State St. Montpelier, VT 802-223-7800
Vermont Granite Museum
As granite travels from below ground to
public display, it encounters the vision of
the artist and the skill of the sculptor as well
as the sweat of many laborers who lift, cut,
polish, and place it.
The process requires special tools, special
lifts, special workspace, special skills, and
very special people.
The Vermont Granite Museum pays tribute
to the heritage of the granite industry by
preserving tools, techniques and photos of a
bygone era, while celebrating the glorious
art work they produced.
Meanwhile, its associated Stone Arts
School teaches the timeless skills and
sculpting techniques that produce today’s
most treasured stone art.
Visitors are immersed not only in the
More
journey from the quarry to public square,
but also the industry’s journey from hand
drills and horses to pneumatic tools and
programmable equipment.
Housed in what was once the largest stone
shed in the world, the Vermont Granite
Museum is itself a work in progress.
Only a fraction of its 6,000
pieces are on display at any
given time.
Volunteers identify, trace,
and restore tools, plaster
casts, and photos to share
the story of families
building a place in the New
World from ancient stone.
Tour Wed-Sat from 10 am
to 4 pm through mid-Oct.
A Slice Above the Rest Since 1982!
Come enjoy the view!
ANGELENO’S PIZZA
Montpelier’s pizzeria serving delicious
Italian foods for over 30 years.
802-229-5721
15 Barre St., Montpelier - Catering available
Angelenospizza.com
Vermont B&B with spectacular mountain views.
WJFrey@comcast.net
802-244-8944 • 1-866-664-8944
Vermont Bed and Breakfast
Inn and Cabin
94 Pine St. Route 100 South, Waterbury, VT 05676
800-800-7760 • 802-244-7726• Grunberghaus.com
Hope Cemetery
A veritable “outdoor museum” of granite
artistry, Hope Cemetery may hold the finest
collection of memorial art to be found
anywhere.
Yankee Magazine has recognized Hope
Cemetery as one of New England’s most
beautiful cemeteries, and honored it with an
Editor’s Choice Award for the best historic
stonework.
The magazine noted: “Serving as both
cemetery and unofficial art gallery, its 65
acres display masterful carvings by many of
the world’s top granite sculptors. In fact, a
large number of the tombstones mark the
graves of the sculptors themselves, and
were sometimes even carved by the very
artist that now lies beneath it.”
Hope Cemetery is the visible embodiment
More
of talent, family pride, and artistic egos.
One sculptor after another sought to make
his family member or himself stand out
with artwork that was the best of the best.
The carvings are ornate, artistic, bold,
humorous, and simply amazing.
With a cell phone
and inexpensive
map and guide
available at Rock
of Ages and other
locations, visitors
can access the
stories behind the
memorials.
Expect to stay
longer than
planned.
An Inn For All Seasons
Hollister Hill Farm
Historic mansion beautifully restored to its
original Victorian elegance.
Bed and Breakfast
2193 Hollister Hill Road, Marshfield, VT 05658
228 Highland Ave. Northfield, VT
Thenorthfieldinn.com 802-485-8558
802-454-7725
Millstone Hill Touring Center
Some 70 miles of hiking and biking trails at
Millstone Hill provide public access to
1,500 acres of unique terrain not far from
Rock of Ages in Barre Town. More than a
hundred years ago, Millstone Hill was the
site of 75 independent quarry operations
that helped fuel Barre's growth and
prosperity. Virtually every foot of Millstone
Hill was cleared and companies used a
small rail system to move granite.
The granite industry attracted immigrants,
primarily French Canadian, Scottish,
Italian, and Irish, and with their skills,
talents, dreams, and traditions.
Later, as quarry operations consolidated,
smaller independents closed down, and
their quarries were abandoned. Gradually
the quarries filled with water and the forest
More
returned. What had been a virtual industrial
wasteland was reclaimed by nature.
Miles of the abandoned rail beds and old
quarry roads now provide moderate trails
for family hiking or biking. Remnants of
the industry are
scattered along the
trails. Piles of grout
have become
visitor lookouts.
Hiking and use of
an 18-hole disc golf
course are free.
Daily fee charged
for biking.
Challenging
mountain trails
available.
Including 1490 Barre-Montpelier Rd.
Berlin, VT • 802-479-1031
8 other VT locations - Visit Website
Pizzahut.com
2374 VT Rt 14
Williamstown, VT
802-433-6718
See More:
Places to stay
Comments welcomed
Places to eat
and appreciated
Things to see
Things to do
cvchamber@aol.com
802-229-5711
Central Vermont
Back Road Bike Tours
Eight bike tours from 5 to 20
miles each. From child-friendly
to experienced only. Dirt roads,
back roads, and much more.
Your guide to each ride.