Solomon Willard 1783 - 1861
No known pictures, drawings or paintings of Solomon Willard have ever been found. The only description of Solomon Willard is from "The Memoir of Solomon Willard" by William W. Wheildon 1854.
Physically he was a large man, tall and stout with slow movement. He never spoke quickly or hastily but moderately, and knew well the advantage that dispatch has over hurry. There is no record that on any occasion, or for any purpose, he would ever move faster than his accustomed walk; but he moved steadily forward, and would probably walk further in the course of a day than most other the men.
No known pictures, drawings or paintings of Solomon Willard have ever been found. The only description of Solomon Willard is from "The Memoir of Solomon Willard" by William W. Wheildon 1854.
Physically he was a large man, tall and stout with slow movement. He never spoke quickly or hastily but moderately, and knew well the advantage that dispatch has over hurry. There is no record that on any occasion, or for any purpose, he would ever move faster than his accustomed walk; but he moved steadily forward, and would probably walk further in the course of a day than most other the men.
Solomon Willard came to be recognized as the father of the granite industry who opened the area of West Quincy for quarrying. Born in Petersham, Massachusetts on June 26, 1783, the son of the village carpenter, learning in his father's shop the use of tools and commenced with a common school education. In 1804 at the age of 21 he came to Boston working at his trade of carpenter. In Boston he studied drawing, connected himself with the Boston Athenaeum, and attended lectures on anatomy, geology, geometry, chemistry, practiced architectural and design and became a teacher of architecture drawing and designing. In 1825 Solomon Willard was unanimously elected as architect and superintendent of the Bunker Hill Monument by the Bunker Hill Building committee. In 1825 Solomon Willard moves to West Quincy to take charge of the Bunker Hill quarry and the finishing of stone for the Bunker Hill monument. Solomon Willard died on February 27, 1861 and is buried in the Hall Place Cemetery, West Quincy.
Jonathan S. Swingle 1856 - 1929
Jonathan. S. Swingle 1856 - 1929
Swingle's quarry is an important site in Quincy's industrial history. Swingle's was developed rather late chronologically, and its granite was used chiefly as a monument material rather than a building stone. Swingle's quarry acquired significance through its long operation in close association with a distinct type of granite, as well as and identification with its owner, a colorful and forward thinking Jonathan S. Swingle. Jonathan Swingle was born in Blue Rock Township, Ohio and came to Quincy in the late 1890s as a young man and found work with the W.C. Townsend Company as a bookkeeper in the granite business. What is now known as Swingle's quarry was operated for just under a century from 1865, when it was opened to quarrying activity by Thomas Elcock what became the "first" Swingle quarry until it closed in 1963. Its most memorable years of operation, however, were from 1902, when it was acquired by Jonathan S Swingle, to 1960, when it was sold to Peter Ruscitto by the Swingle heirs. The Swingle's quarry that was previously known as Elcock quarry, was purchased in 1902 by Jonathan Swingle and continued quarrying granite. The adjoining Reinhalter quarry, which was later purchased by Thomas Mannix, eventually became the property of Jonathan Swingle. The quarries were merged together over time forming one large quarry. Swingle's quarry contained vast quantities of extra dark granite, so-called for its deep, off black color. The exceptional hardness of this stone, which like all Quincy granite's contained no mica, permitted it to be polished to a high luster, prompting its use as a monument material. It was this non-architecture application of stone that kept Swingle's in business even after granite fell from favor as a building stone. Although opened quite late in history of the granite quarrying industry in Quincy, Swingle's was the last such enterprise to suspend operation. Its longevity, which resulted in its becoming one of the largest and deepest "pit" quarry in the United States at 389 feet in depth. Jonathan S. Swingle closely identified himself with the product from his quarry, to the point of being known throughout Quincy in the granite trade as the "Extra Dark Man". Swingle advocated technological improvements for the betterment of the local industry and tirelessly championed Quincy granite's as the best on the market. After his death in 1929, the business was continued by his son J. Sumner Swingle under whose leadership it was the only Quincy quarry to remain in operation during World War II and ceased operations in 1955 and laid dormant until 1961 when attempts were made to reactivate it until its final shutdown in 1963.
Swingle's quarry is an important site in Quincy's industrial history. Swingle's was developed rather late chronologically, and its granite was used chiefly as a monument material rather than a building stone. Swingle's quarry acquired significance through its long operation in close association with a distinct type of granite, as well as and identification with its owner, a colorful and forward thinking Jonathan S. Swingle. Jonathan Swingle was born in Blue Rock Township, Ohio and came to Quincy in the late 1890s as a young man and found work with the W.C. Townsend Company as a bookkeeper in the granite business. What is now known as Swingle's quarry was operated for just under a century from 1865, when it was opened to quarrying activity by Thomas Elcock what became the "first" Swingle quarry until it closed in 1963. Its most memorable years of operation, however, were from 1902, when it was acquired by Jonathan S Swingle, to 1960, when it was sold to Peter Ruscitto by the Swingle heirs. The Swingle's quarry that was previously known as Elcock quarry, was purchased in 1902 by Jonathan Swingle and continued quarrying granite. The adjoining Reinhalter quarry, which was later purchased by Thomas Mannix, eventually became the property of Jonathan Swingle. The quarries were merged together over time forming one large quarry. Swingle's quarry contained vast quantities of extra dark granite, so-called for its deep, off black color. The exceptional hardness of this stone, which like all Quincy granite's contained no mica, permitted it to be polished to a high luster, prompting its use as a monument material. It was this non-architecture application of stone that kept Swingle's in business even after granite fell from favor as a building stone. Although opened quite late in history of the granite quarrying industry in Quincy, Swingle's was the last such enterprise to suspend operation. Its longevity, which resulted in its becoming one of the largest and deepest "pit" quarry in the United States at 389 feet in depth. Jonathan S. Swingle closely identified himself with the product from his quarry, to the point of being known throughout Quincy in the granite trade as the "Extra Dark Man". Swingle advocated technological improvements for the betterment of the local industry and tirelessly championed Quincy granite's as the best on the market. After his death in 1929, the business was continued by his son J. Sumner Swingle under whose leadership it was the only Quincy quarry to remain in operation during World War II and ceased operations in 1955 and laid dormant until 1961 when attempts were made to reactivate it until its final shutdown in 1963.
Gridley Bryant 1789 - 1867
Gridley Bryant (1789 – June 13, 1867) was an American construction engineer who ended up building the first commercial railroad in the United States and inventing most of the basic technologies involved in it. Bryant invented a portable derrick in 1823 and soon gained a reputation for being a master structure builder. He was awarded the contract to build the United States Bank in Boston, Massachusetts, and the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, Massachusetts. In investigating how to move the granite needed for these projects from the quarry in Quincy to the work sites, he concluded that the best method would be via a railroad, much like that of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway which was still in the planning stages at the time. A reluctant state legislature granted Bryant a charter to build a railroad with Bunker Hill monument director Thomas Handasyd Perkins as the principal financier and owner of a majority of the shares. Construction began on the Granite Railway, one of the first railroads in North America, on April 1, 1826, with the first train operating on the railroad on October 7, 1826. Since the railroad was essentially new technology, Bryant had to create the designs for nearly every aspect of the railroad, including the cars (4- and 8-wheel designs), track, switches, wheels, turntable, and load transfer equipment. Mr. Bryant utilized similar developments and technologies that had already been in use on the railroads in England, but he modified his design to allow for heavier, more concentrated loads and a three-foot frost line. The only real difference between Bryant's Granite Railway and the Liverpool and Manchester was in the motive power; Bryant used horses and gravity to pull his trains, while the Liverpool and Manchester used steam locomotives. Although he designed and created all of the machinery, Bryant did not file patents on any of his inventions for the railroad. In 1834, Ross Winans filed a patent for the eight-wheel car design that Bryant had first invented. Bryant was called upon as an expert witness by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in an effort to invalidate Winans' patent
Thomas Handasyd Perkins
Colonel Thomas Handasyd Perkinswas born December 15, 1764. He was one of 10 children of James and Elizabeth Perkins. The family had planned to send Perkins to Harvard College, but he had no interest in college education. At the age of 15 he began working in the shipping business and in 1785 when he turned 21 he became legally entitled to a small bequest by his grandfather which launched his business career as a merchant and financier. In 1785, when China open the port of Canton to foreign businesses, Perkins was one of the first of the Boston merchants to engage in the China trade. In 1828 Perkins and associates purchased land at Pine Hill in West Quincy and started quarrying stone under the name of the Granite Railway Company, Perkins was the driving force in the building of the Bunker Hill Monument and in the building of the first commercial incorporated railway in America, the Granite Railway. He served as president of the Granite Railway Company from its establishment in 1826 until 1834. As a testimonial of Pres. Washington's administration of Col. Perkins, he offered him the secretaryship of the Navy. The latter politely refused the position, saying that he owned a larger fleet of vessels then the United States Navy possessed and believe he could do more good by continuing to manage his own property which included the granite industry in Quincy. In later years, Perkins became a philanthropist to many organizations throughout Boston one of which was the Perkins School for the Blind. Perkins died on January 11, 1854 in during the funeral service for merchants of Boston close their offices, a recognition shown to few others, also the bells of the city were tolled for one hour, and scores of vessels in the harbor display their colors at half- mast. During the burial service the children of the choir from the Perkins Institute for the Blind, which had been founded cheaply through his generosity, saying a requiem.