PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: America the Beautiful (and Natural!)

As we celebrate the Independence Day this July 4th, Kirby Stone Company, LLC wants to focus on the most renowned national landmarks and memorials that have had, and will always have, on the formation of the United States. The handful of landmarks and monuments discussed are only a few that use natural stone, and each possesses the same benefits characteristic of natural stone: unique, enduring, timeless and beautiful.

Arlington National Cemetery

Located in Virginia, Arlington National Cemetery was established during the American Civil War is a military cemetery. The land used for this reminder of all those who have served in the United States Armed Forces was originally the estate of the family of Confederate general Robert E. Lee's wife Mary Anna (Custis) Lee. The cemetery is situated directly across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. and also serves as the burial grounds for many other individuals and Presidents influential to what America is today. For more information on Arlington National Cemetery, please visit the official site HERE.

Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon is a World Heritage Site located in northwestern Arizona, and it is renowned for its geological significance. The Colorado River snakes through the Grand Canyon, cutting the ravines to an average depth of 4,000 feet. These large incisions create a tremendous record of up to four geological periods, displaying a wide array of geological features, rock types and fossils…a geologist, paleontologist, archaeologist and biologist’s dream!! For more information on the Grand Canyon, please visit the official site HERE.

Lincoln Memorial

Sitting amidst the National Mall in Washington D.C., the Lincoln Memorial was built to honor Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States. Built in the design of a Greek Doric temple, the Lincoln Memorial utilizes Yule Marble, a sedimentary stone located in Colorado. The marble is known for the consistency of its pure white color. It does not possess the gray streaks typically found with quarried marble in Vermont and other areas of the country. The Lincoln Memorial has been the site of many famous momentous speeches, including Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech. For more information on the Lincoln Memorial, please visit the official site HERE.

Mesa Verde

Similar to the Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde is also designated as a World Heritage Site. Located in Colorado, Mesa Verde was the first national park set aside to preserve the works of man. The location includes some of the most well kept cliff dwellings in the world as well as many geological features. Most of the stone consists of sandstone and shale, and some rock formations date back 90 million years. Well known for the cliff dwellings, these structures, built within the cliffs, were occupied by the Anasazi people between 550 and 1300 AD. Cliff Palace is located within Mesa Verde and is considered the largest cliff dwelling found within North America. For more information on Mesa Verde National Park, please visit the official site HERE.

United States Capitol Building

The United States Capitol is one of the most recognized structures in the landscape of United States history. Located in Washington D.C., on top of Capitol Hill amidst the National Mall, the building is used as the workplace for Congress, and the name “Capitol” is latin for “city on a hill”. Freemason and the first President of the United States, George Washington laid the cornerstone of the structure, and while the original structure consisted sandstone, quarried in Virginia and ferried to Washington D.C., additions to the United States Capitol Building were built using marble. For more information on the United States Capitol Building, please visit the official site HERE.

Mount Rushmore

Situated within the Black Hills of South Dakota, Mount Rushmore is one of the most visited national landmarks, hosting over three million visitors annually. The name derives from New York City attorney, Charles E. Rushmore, who, in 1855, was appointed to find the title of ownership to the property on which the monument was carved. Sculpted by Gutzon Borglum and later by his son Lincoln Borglum, the sculptures include 60-foot heads of the former Presidents of the United States in granite. The project’s construction began in 1927 and continued until funding expired in 1941. For more information on Mount Rushmore, please visit the official site HERE.

Washington Monument

The Washington Monument is an obelisk, a tall four-sided tapering monument, located near the west end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C. and due east of the Lincoln Memorial in the National Mall. Built to commemorate George Washington, the monument is constructed of marble, granite, and bluestone gneiss, much of which was donated from states throughout the Union and foreign dignitaries. The Washington monument is both the world's tallest stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk, standing 555 feet 51⁄8 inches, and until the Eiffel Tower was completed in 1889, the monument was the tallest structure in the world. Construction of the monument began in 1848 but was not completed until 1884. The monument was finally dedicated in 1885. For more information on the Washington Monument, please visit the official site HERE.

Rainbow Bridge

Located within the feet of Navajo Mountain in southern Utah, Rainbow Bridge is considered to be one of the world’s highest natural bridges at 290 feet. Consisting of sandstone formed during the Triassic and Jurassic periods, Rainbow Bridge was known for centuries by Native Americans as sacred. They referred to the structure as Nonnezoshe or "rainbow turned to stone”. It was not until 1910 when the structure became known to the public, as President William Howard Taft deemed it a national landmark to preserve this "extraordinary natural bridge, having an arch which is in form and appearance much like a rainbow, and which is of great scientific interest as an example of eccentric stream erosion." For more information on Rainbow Bridge, please visit the official site HERE.

From all of us at Kirby Stone Company, LLC, we wish you a safe and memorable Independence Day. Remember all those who have come before and blazed a trail to what the United States is today. God Bless America!

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

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NATURAL STONE FUNDAMENTALS: Benefits of Natural Stone

When beginning a new project, whether the project entails new construction of a residential or commercial development or the renovation of a pre-existing project, perhaps a patio or fireplace, the use of natural stone grants the user the benefit of several characteristics and qualities that will distinguish the project and provide you with the satisfaction of a high-quality finished product. The benefits of using natural stone in your next project include all of the following:

Unique

Limestone with Fossils - Approx. 20 million years old

Natural stone is manufactured by the earth itself, and the aesthetics of the stone are often affected by the weather and other environmental conditions, making most stone unique to the region in which it is quarried. Every slab of natural stone has characteristics distinctive to that particular stone. The benefit of such a characteristic ensures an appearance within a landscaping or construction project that is truly one of a kind.

Enduring

The Alamo - San Antonio, Texas

The earth produces natural stone over a period of millions of years, and stone is featured in some of the largest architectural feats in history. Many of these historic landmarks utilizing the benefits of natural limestone or sandstone include the Alamo, the pyramids of Egypt (limestone), the City of Pompeii and many other projects from the beginning of civilization to modern times. When using natural stone, you can be assured your project will endure several lifetimes!

Timeless

Empire State Building - New York, New York

Utilizing natural limestone and sandstone promotes a distinct sustained resource that provides depth and contrast to the design aspects of a project. The durability and strength of natural stone and the variations of colors and textures contribute to a wealth of design ideas that will outlast any construction fad and withstand the test of time.

Beautiful

Prince Edward Islands - Sandstone Arch

When thinking about natural stone’s qualities, no one characteristic is more vital than the stone’s beauty. This trait is the sum total of natural stone’s unique, enduring and timeless qualities. The variation in texture and color from one stone to the next, the stone’s innate ability to endure and the intrinsic value of a design that promotes aesthetics from era to era all prove natural stone to be an asset to any project.

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

www.KIRBYSTONE.com

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KIRBY STONE PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: Cascada at Canyon Lake

Cascada at Canyon Lake – Exterior Signage

The Team

Design Firm: A-Design by Gustavo Arredondo, San Antonio, Texas
Landscape Design: TBG Partners, San Antonio, Texas
Developer: Stadler & Leatham Development, Bulverde, Texas
Masonry Contractor: JM Castillo Masonry, San Antonio, Texas

The Project

With the entrance completed in 2009, Cascada at Canyon Lake is one the Spring Branch, Texas’ newest master planned communities. Situated north of San Antonio, the project is located near Canyon Lake and the Guadalupe River in the Texas Hill Country. Amidst these natural attractions, Cascada at Canyon Lake is a luxurious hill country playground with large lots for new custom homes. Home builders within the community currently include Stadler Custom Homes and VERITAS Custom Home Builders.

For more information regarding Cascada at Canyon Lake, including local amenities, available lots and more, please visit them online HERE.

Cascada at Canyon Lake – Guard House & Gated Entrance

The Stone

The stone selection for the Cascada at Canyon Lake project is Kirby Premium Cave natural limestone, originating from Kirby Stone Company’s limestone quarry located in Salado, Texas. Our first Kirby Premium Cave project, we were oringinally skeptical of the stone’s ability to stand on its own, due to the dark colors and hard textures associated with this natural limestone product. However, as Kirby Stone Company, LLC has always done, we accommodated Bron Leatham’s vision for the development, and Kirby Stone Company, LCC was excited to be part of such a unique, beautiful project.

As one reviews these photos of the project in the blog, you will notice the predominance of an extremely rough texture and rustic color throughout the project’s community walls and entrance design. The color and texture of the natural limestone is complimented well by the rust-colored wrought iron, and the total package blends well with the natural landscape of the Texas Hill Country.

Laid in an ashlar pattern, the Kirby Premium Cave natural limestone has been prepared into a sawn, chopped form. Ranging from four inches to ten inches in face height, the Kirby Premium Cave limestone is sawn on the top and bottom with rough, split faces on the remaining sides.

Cascada at Canyon Lake – Community Walls

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

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STONE SHOWCASE: Hill Country Blend

Product Description

Kirby Stone Company, LLC’s Hill Country Blend consists of a unique blend of natural limestone colors. Predominantly Kirby Cream, additional limestone colors include Salado Gold and Kirby White. Upon request, the ratio of cream, gold and white natural limestone may be altered to accommodate your project.


Hill Country Blend natural limestone is most often paired with a white mortar, which helps each individual stone unit stand out effectively.

Kirby Stone Company’s Hill Country Blend limestone is quarried in Salado, Texas. For more information or photographs pertaining to Kirby Stone Company’s natural limestone products, please visit our website.

Product Availability

Kirby Stone Company’s Kirby Cream natural limestone products are available in a variety of different styles and product types. A full list of available products is listed below. Should you have any questions regarding terminology, you may access Kirby Stone Company’s Stone 101 Lessons by clicking HERE.

• Sawn Chopped Stone
  

• Thin Veneer Chopped Stone
  

• Sawn Patio Stone
  

• Sawn Hearths and Lintels

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

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HISTORIC PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: The University of the South

All Saints’ Chapel – University of the South

With the mercury rising to consistent highs of 100 degrees last week, we at Kirby Stone Company, LLC are taking meteorology into our own hands by assuming summer in Texas is officially upon us! While the summer typically means students don’t have to think about school anymore until August or September, Kirby Stone Company’s article this week focuses on a natural sandstone stone project that has been recognized by organizations as one of America’s Most Beautiful Campuses. Today we will delve into some of the details surrounding Tennessee’s very own University of the South.

Walsh Ellet Hall – University of the South

The Project

Originally founded in 1857, the University of the South, which is fondly referred to as simply “Sewanee” to many of the school’s current enrollees, the opening of the school was delayed until 1868 due to the Civil War. However, the University of the South was strongly supported by several benefactors in the United States as well as England noting the Southern United States needed an Episcopal presence.

McClurg Dining Hall – University of the South

The first class of the University of the South began with nine students and four faculty members. However, the deeply embedded history of Sewanee in intercollegiate sports, the numerous additions and improvements to campus and the university’s dedication to education and its Episcopal belief system has helped Sewanee grow to the over 1,500 students and become one of the top liberal arts colleges in the United States.

The Stone

All of the natural sandstone used for the University of the South’s gothic architecture is inherently Tennessee. While many of the notable natural sandstone projects around the campus date back to the early 20th century, there are also several newer projects that boast many of the same ideas in design, including the McClurg Dining Hall.

McClurg Dining Hall – University of the South

The natural sandstone product used for the University of the South’s McClurg Dining Hall was all quarried in Tennessee. With over 2,000 tons of stone, much of the sandstone was quarried right on the Domain, the area’s common name for the 13,000 forested acres of campus. Additional sandstone product was quarried from surrounding Tennessee areas.

The meticulous nature with which the natural sandstone has been applied to the University of the South, even with their newer buildings, gives the campus an old world, Cambridge feel without ever having to leave their own backyard. Now that is GREEN! It is no wonder that the campus’ unique appearance through the use of indigenous natural sandstone consistently lands the University of the South near the top of “Most Beautiful Campus” surveys!

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

www.KIRBYSTONE.com

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