Alabaster
Posted by: 
S5280ft
N 44° 11.533 W 083° 33.372
17T E 295719 N 4896399
Located along the shoreline where Turtle Road Dead ends into Benson Road. Streetside parking available.
Waymark Code: WM1KHR
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 05/27/2007
Views: 45
This area is named after a variety of gypsum, discovered offshore by Douglass Houghton in 1837. Prospectors soon began searching for other gypsum deposits, and this quarry was opened in 1862 by B. F. Smith. Used at first as fertilizer and as an ingredient in plaster, gypsum is now used principally in the manufacture of wallboard. A fire in 1891 destroyed the operation but it was rebuilt in time to supply material for the main buildings at the Chicago Columbian Exposition of 1893. These buildings, with marble-like walls, earned the exposition the title, "White City," and greatly expanded gypsum sales. Incorporated into the U.S. Gypsum Company in 1902, this quarry has helped to make Michigan a leading producer of gypsum for over a century.
Historical Date: 01/01/1862
Historical Name: B. F. Smith, Douglass Houghton
Parking nearby?: yes
D/T ratings: 
website: [Web Link]
Registered Site #: State Site #0247
Description: Not listed
|
Visit Instructions:Take a photo of your GPS at the marker. We'd prefer a photo of you with your GPS, but we realize that sometimes that's just not possible or preferable.
Also include a bit about your visit to the marker.
NEW: Instructions for logging Missing Marker Visits.
If the Marker is missing, but still listed here, you must provide a photo of you at the actual item historically honored. (This should be the waymark's "default" image). Indicate in your log that you took your photo at the Historical Location instead of the marker, because the marker was missing. Please also still include a bit about your visit to the site.