Geology in Western Massachusetts
Geologically the western region of Massachusetts includes rich deposits of what is called Stockbridge Limestone named after the neighboring Stockbridge Valley in New York (Emerson, 1917). Rock outcroppings, locally known as cobbles, are found along the Berkshire Mountains and the limestone was used for many applications. The limestone had been quarried as early as the late 17th century yielding a high-quality marble that was used in buildings along the east coast of the US. For example, Hitchcock (1838) reported that marble mined in Sheffield was used in Girard College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Along the spine of the county, multiple limestone quarries are found. Records indicate that the first lime kiln arrive in Sheffield, Massachusetts in 1829 (Preiss, 1976). It is likely though that farmers may have built smaller kilns to burn the limestone for their immediate needs.
As the growth of the industry prospered, the need for additional raw limestone meant quarries were increasingly in demand. Most were unmapped until T. Nelson Dale (1923) prepared a comprehensive inventory of limestone and the associated industries for the U.S. Geological Survey. The document is found in at this link.
On record, the main quarry that supplied the Sheffield Lime Kilns is the Goodale Quarry founded by Sheffield Businessman Chester Goodale in the early 19th century (Holland, 1855; Bryan, 1887; Preiss, 1976). The quarry remained in operation for approximately 120 years and provided the raw material for several local lime kiln businesses.
Early maps mark the site of the complex (https://pubs.usgs.gov/bul/0744/plate-3.pdf). (refer to the maps from 9 August 2022 I posted on this blog) Additionally see the portion of the 1904 map that shows the details of the northern Sheffield and the proximity of the Goodale Quarry and Barnes and Son’s Lime Kiln (Barnes & Farnham, 1904). Compare this map to the AT route highlighted a few days ago.
The Chester Goodale Quarry and the Berkshire Hills Company partnered in 1905 and remained in operation until the 1929 with a transfer of ownership to the Berkshire Hills Lime Company, Inc. and one year later to the United States Gypsum Company when the business transferred the operation to a modern day rotary lime kiln located one half mile east at the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad tracks. The property transferred to private ownership in 1943 and continued to exchange ownership several times until 1991 when the US federal government acquired the property to secure open space lands for the Appalachian Trail.
More details can be found on Sanborn maps that are protected by copyright.
Figure 3. Portion on Barnes and Farnham map (Plate 38), dated 1904 showing the Goodale Quarry and to the southeast Barnes’s Sons Lime Kiln (Barnes & Farnham, 1904).
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