Re: Colorado Yule Marble Co. info

I have a copy of [bCRYSTAL RIVER PICTORIALb]which also has some info on the railroad over Yule Pass. If you get turned onto Marble, CO and its colorful history, there is an excellent two volume set published by Sundance.

A bit removed from our discussion on railroads, but you are better acquainted with Yule quarry marble than you might imagine. The columns at the Lincoln Memorial came from this quarry. And if you look at the top third of the Washington Monument you will notice that it is a slightly lighter color due to the fact that the marble came from the high purity Yule marble.

Carrera marble from Italy is often regarded as being the top of the line, but there are many people who will disagree. Carrera's reputation comes mostly because the quarry sits next to a river and transportation is not the problem that it is in Colorado.

And most importantly perhaps, the Tomb of the Unknowns (as it is presently known) is Yule marble. Unfortunately, after the many years the Tomb has developed a crack and is being replaced with Yule marble. The replacement will be identical to the original. This is proving to be a lengthy process as the company which presently has the lease to the quarry is not going to furnish the new block of raw material until they are convinced they have found a flawless block. This is taking time.

The Yule quarry is owned by the Vermont Marble Co. which closely controls the production. However, they do allow artisans to use Yule marble. If you visit the town of Marble you are likely to see some beautiful sculptures being created there.

And a visit to the millsite is a must. Lots of castoff chunks of marble lying around. The most interesting part, to me, is the far end of the mill. The original owner constructed a special building just for crafting the Lincoln Memorial columns and there are several cut off ends lying around - flutes and all. The millsite even had a vault (made out of lower grade marble of course) where especially high quality blocks were stored. And the Crystal River Rairoad grade serving the mill was lined with low grade chunks of marble. All in all, a kewl place to kill a day.

And if all this doesn't fickle your tancy you can drop down north and visit the town of Redstone. A model mining town with quite a few original dwellings still being occupied. It's primarily an artsy craftsy community now. It has a beautiful hotel, the Redstone Inn, which may be worth a stay. I know it has a good restaurant as I have eaten there several times.

Just outside of town is what is sometimes referred to as Redstone Castle, but its correct name is Cleveholm. It was built by Col. Channing Meek for his wife, known as Lady Bountiful. Meek owned the high quality deposits of coking coal in Coal Basin near Redstone, and he along with John Evans formed what became Colorado Coal and Iron, later to be known as Colorado Fuel & Iron (CF&I).

The railroad which served the coal mines was brought down to Redstone run through the breaker and used to charge the large array of coke ovens there.

Now if I could just find someone who can add to my meager knowledge of the railroad at the top of Yule Pass.

CJ