Lyons Turning Mill - Quincy, MA
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NorStar
N 42° 14.610 W 071° 02.850
19T E 331075 N 4678841
The Lyons Turning Mill was built in 1894 and was where columns of granite up to 20 ft long and 3 ft wide were turned.
Waymark Code: WMVZZ1
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 06/18/2017
Views: 0
In Quincy, near the Granite Links Golf Club, is the Lyons Turning Mill ruins, listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
To get to the ruins, from I-93 north, take the exit for Furnace Brook Parkway, travel around the rotary, then take the exit just before going under the highway, then travel along a road parallel to the highway, bearing right at a fork (if you take the left fork you will end up back on the highway) then, at the end of the road, take a sharp left onto Willard Street, then cross the highway and follow Willard Street parallel to the highway to the intersection with Ricciuti Drive, then drive to Ricciuti Drive to an intersection with the sign for Granite Links on the left. Bear right (straight) and follow the road to the ruins on the left.
The site is a U-shape structure of walls with no roof and openings for windows but no window frames or glass. The dimensions are 200 ft by 90 ft. The tops of the walls are irregular, going from about a story to 1 1/2 stories tall. There is a cement cap on the top to keep water from seeping into the walls, roughly a foot thick. Between the window openings are thicker walls. Placed around the building are some of the remains of columns that were turned at this location - possible rejects from the work done. Surrounding the site is a modern chain-link fence. Nearby is the Lyons Quarry, now filled with water.
The building was built in 1894 by the Lyons Granite Company. In the structure were lathes that could turn 6 ft diameter spheres or columns that were 3ft diameter and 22 ft tall. At one time there were 80 people working at the site. A spur of the Granite Railroad was built to the building so material could be transported to and from the mill. It remained operational for only a short time - closing in 1907.
Currently, an organization, the Quincy Quarry and Granite Workers Museum occupies the spot and hopes to establish a museum here. They do have walks and meetings about the quarries - check their web site for events planned.
Source:
Wikipedia (NRHP Listings in Quincy Mass.):
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visit link)
Quincy Quarry and Granite Workmen Museum:
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visit link)