LARGEST -- Pink Granite Quarry in the USA - Marble Falls, TX
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member Raven
N 30° 35.317 W 098° 18.066
14R E 567006 N 3384220
Granite Mountain in Marble Falls, TX boasts to be the largest quarry of solid pink granite in the USA. Excavations started in the 1880's and not much is left of the original 'mountain', but operations are still ongoing to date.
Waymark Code: WM13AF0
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 10/25/2020
Published By:Groundspeak Regular Member jhuoni
Views: 2

Per Wikipedia:

Granite Mountain [was] a solid dome of pink granite rising over 860 feet one mile west of Marble Falls, Texas. Since quarry operations began in the late 19th century, the distinctive pink-red colored rock has been used in the construction of the Texas State Capitol in Austin, Texas, and also for the construction of the Galveston Seawall. The mountain no longer looks like a geographic feature because of the heavy mining, which has fully covered its surface.

A pink granite state historical marker can be found at a Texas Department of Transportation rest area on FM-1431, just .25mi North of the quarry and overlooking the quarrying operations. It reads:

-=-=-=-

"Granite Mountain - 1979

This 866 foot dome of solid prink granite covering 180 acres, contains the largest quarry of its kind in the United States. This mountain, like all granite formations, was once melted rock similar to lava. As the molten rock cooled thousands of feet below the earth surface, it hardened into large crystals of quarts, feldspar and several dark-colored minerals.

Whenever strength, durability and beauty of finish is required, granite is a favored building stone.

[...]

Today granite from this quarry here is shipped to all parts of Texas, the U.S. and foreign countries for use in monuments, shafts, jetties and buildings. It has been used in the Galveston sea wall and in new state office buildings near the Capitol in Austin."
Type of documentation of superlative status: State historical marker at a hwy rest area on FM-1431, with its coords marked below..

Location of coordinates: N 30° 35.555 W 98° 17.945

Web Site: Not listed

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Raven visited LARGEST -- Pink Granite Quarry in the USA - Marble Falls, TX 10/10/2020 Raven visited it