British Geological Survey – GeoScenic – British Quarry Photographic Images

Building Stone Institute (BSI) “Founded in 1919, Building Stone Institute is a not-for-profit trade association dedicated to serving its member firms while at the same time educating consumers on the uses and benefits of natural stone. For nearly 90 years, BSI has worked on behalf of the quarries, fabricators, dealers, importers, exporters, carvers, restorers, designers, and installers that comprise our membership….”

Building Stone Magazine: “Building Stone, the official publication of the Building Stone Institute, is the premier magazine for quarriers, fabricators, dealers, importers, exporters, carvers, restorers, designers and installers of natural stone. With in-depth features, high-quality photographs and articles covering a broad spectrum of industry concerns, Building Stone offers a comprehensive view of the latest trends in the natural stone trade.”

Early American Industries Association, Inc. (The Early American Industries Association, Inc., was founded in 1933. “The purpose of the Early American Industries Association, Inc. is to encourage the study and better understanding of early American industries in the home, in the shop, on the farm, and on the sea, also to discover, identify, classify, preserve and exhibit obsolete tools, implements, and mechanical devices which were used in early America.”)

Geological Surveys – United States, presented on the Association of American Geologists (AASG) web site.

Geological Surveys – Worldwide, presented on Geology.com. (Scroll down to “Worldwide Geological Surveys.”)

Geology / Mining / & Stone-related Book Resources:

2Neat Books – Specializing in out-of-print geology papers and journals.(“Publications in the fields of geology, geoscience, hydrology, mineralogy, paleonotology, sedimentology, petroleum, meteoritic, oceanography, biology, natural history, archaeology, seismology, wave dynamics, anthropology, earth sciences and more – including papers, guidebooks, reports, circulars, proceedings, maps, bulletins, books, more.”)

The Astragal Press – Books on antique tools, antique tool collecting, and early trades such as blacksmithing, carriage building, stone, wood, early sciences and technologies including railroad technology are available at the Astragal Press.  Stone-related books such as the following are available:  The Art of Splitting Stone, by Marge Gage and James Gage, A Diderot Pictorial Encyclopedia of Trades and industry, Stone Primer, by Charles McRaven.

Ed Rogers – Rare & Out of Print Geoscience Books

Mining History Books, presented by Robert Fox.

MS Book and Mineral Company – “Your source of recent, rare, and out-of-print books and publications concerning Geology, Mining History, Ore Deposits, Paleontology, Western Americana, publications of both the United States Geological Survey and the United States Bureau of Mines, and more…”

Upper Midwest Geology and Natural History Books, Phillip Huber, Bookseller/Geologist.

Historical Construction Equipment Association

Journeyman Stonecutters Association of North America – “A brief history of the oldest active union in North America, the people who cut the stone and carved the statues, shaped the column capitals and chiseled the gargoyles that gave our built environment the human touch” (scroll down to section), presented by Walter S. Arnold, Sculptor/Stone Carver.

Marble Institute of America “the world’s leading authority on natural stone” (The Multimedia section includes From the Quarry to the Kitchen, Real Stone-Real Value: The Story of Natural Stone (a video that “showcases the history of natural stone from ancient times to modern day….,” An Architect’s Guide to Nature’s Premier Building Material, and many other resources.)

mindat.org – the Mineral and Locality Database:  42,030 mineral names (including synonyms, varieties, etc.). 240,112 different localities. 528,888 member photos, presented by Jolyon Ralph. (The mindat.org web site also includes valuable information about previous quarry names, owners names, and quarry photographs.)

National Building Granite Quarries Association  “We are an association of North American granite quarriers aligned with the Natural Stone Institute.  Our members provide 60+ colors of building stone to the commercial market.”

National Stone, Sand & Gravel Association

The National Training Center for Stone and Masonry Trades (NTC) (This site presents resources for people of interests and levels of interest and expertise. Some topics covered are: Stone Books, Consulting Services, Seminars, Ask Our Experts, Industry Related Links, Contractor Directory, Stone Tips, and videos, brochures, and cassette tapes.)

Stone Carvers Guild – The Stone Carvers Guild is a group of independent working professional carvers based throughout the United States whose goal is “to ensure that carved stone will continue to play an important role in our built environment throughout the 21st century and beyond.”

Stone Federation Great Britain – Description from the web site: “Stone Federation is the official trade association for the natural stone industry. The Federation co-ordinates all aspects of the industry and provides specifiers and users with a first point of contact for information, advice and guidance in sourcing an appropriate material and a reliable service.”

Stone Portals on the Internet

estonex.com is a “electronic stone exchange for the global stone market.”

FindStone.com, Mumbai (Bombay), India. FindStone.com is a market place for stone that includes resources to help people to understand, decide and buy stone and related products and services. A few years ago, FindStone.com used to present their “Stone Album” on their web site, which showed over 2,000 stone photographs. It does not appear to be available any longer, but you can still view the stone photographs using the FindStone.com “Stone Album,” using the Internet Archive Wayback Machine.

Marble in the World Data Bank (includes a world-wide search engine of stone images and specifications)

Stone Contact: International Stone Market for travertine, marble, granite, limestone, quartzite, and more.

Stone Network.com – This web site is described as “The on-line resource site for the stone industry and allied professions. From this web site you will be able to locate many of the world’s leading quarriers and processors, suppliers of machinery, trade associations, exhibitions and numerous other related web sites that together make up over 100,000 companies globally that are all interested in one thing – the promotion of stone as the undisputed premier material whether it be for constructional, ornamental, decorative or monumental use.”

Stone World – “Stone World magazine is recognized worldwide as the leading source of information on stone use in architecture and interior design as well as stone production, distribution, installation, and maintenance. With technical information, high quality architectural photography and in-depth international industry coverage, Stone World is designed for and read by the top buyers and decision makers who specify, quarry, fabricate, export, import, distribute, design, sell and install stone and stone-related equipment and supplies.”

StoneExpoZone – The Natural Stone Portal (includes their Stone Search form)

The Stonecutter – This is a bi-monthly online newsletter published by Pasvalco. It is full of up-to-date, detailed information of interest to contractors, architects and builders alike. Back issues are available on this web site. Their “Learning Materials Online” section offers material for people at all levels. Two publications offered currently are: Building Stone – “A Technical Primer is Frank Melka’s extensive work on the technical details of building stone from chemical makeup to strengths and weaknesses in various types of stone and Elements of Stone Masonry.(which) will give you detailed information about techniques and styles as well as proper materials and procedures.”

The Stone Foundation, Stonexus Magazine. Tomas Lipps, Editor, Santa Fe, New Mexico: inaugural edition Summer, 2001. The Stone Foundation Society is a society of stonemasons, architects, contractors, artists, archaeologists and others involved with, or interested in, stonework.

Toolemera Press: Ephemera and Books on Early Tools, Trades, Crafts, and Industries.

Tout Quarry and Sculpture Park

U. S. Bureau of Mines Minerals Yearbooks (1932-1993) (U.S. & Worldwide)

United States Geological Survey Resources: (Some of the USGS resources below contain statitistical information on the mineral industries.)

U. S. Geological Survey Library – “The USGS Library is the largest earth science library in the world. The library serves the research needs of USGS scientists throughout the nation and provides information to other organizations and individuals in the areas of geology, hydrology, cartography, biology, and related fields. USGS libraries are located in Reston, Virginia; Denver, Colorado; Menlo Park, California; and Flagstaff, Arizona.”

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey.

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2002, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey. [PDF]

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2003, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey. [PDF]

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2004, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey. [PDF]

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2005, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey. [PDF]

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2006, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey. [PDF]

Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2007, United States Geological Survey Mineral Industry Survey. [PDF]

U. S. Geological Survey – Commodity Statistics & Information(“Statistics and information on the worldwide supply of, demand for, and flow of minerals and materials essential to the U.S. economy, the national security, and protection of the environment.”)

U. S. Geological Survey Minerals Information – Publications and Data Products

U. S. Geological Survey – “Mineral News”

U. S. Geological Survey – Mineral Resources Program (Below are some of the stone-related links available at this web address.)

Contributions to Industrial-Minerals Research, U.S. Geological Survey Bulletin 2209, Version 1, edited by James D. Bliss, Phillip R. Moyle, and Keith R. Long, 2002.

Historical Statistics for Mineral and Material Commodities in the United States, U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 01-006, by Thomas Kelly, David Buckingham, Carl DiFrancesco, Kenneth Porter, Thomas Goonan, John Sznopek, Cyrus Berry, and Melissa Crane, Version 9.2 (Online Only). In addition to many others, included are PDF and XLS (formats) files on the following commodities: Abrasives, Cement, Lime, Stone (crushed), and Stone (dimension). (Also, see next section.)

Commodity Statistics and Information – “Statistics and information on the worldwide supply of, demand for, and flow of minerals and materials essential to the U.S. economy, the national security, and protection of the environment.” Some of the stone-related commodities include:

Abrasives – Manufactured Abrasives Statistics and Information (includes: Mineral Commodity Summaries (1996-2010);Mineral Yearbooks (1932-1993), (1994-2008); Mineral Industry Surveys (2008 and 2009); and Special Publications as of Aug. 2005, which includes: Historical Statistics for Mineral Commodities in the United States – Abrasives.

Cement – Statistics and Information (includes: Mineral Commodity Summaries (1996-2010); Mineral Yearbooks (1932-1993), (1994-2007); Mineral Industry Surveys (2008 and 2009); and Special Publications, which includes as of Aug. 2005: Historical Statistics for Mineral Commodities in the United States – Cement.

Lime – Statistics and Information (includes: Mineral Commodity Summaries (1996-2010); Mineral Yearbooks (1932-1993), (1994-2008); and Special Publications, which includes: (1) Directory of Lime Plants in the United States in 2008; (2) Historical Statistics for Mineral Commodities in the United States, OF-2001-006; (3) Lime in the United States 1950-2001; (4) Lime Kiln Dust as a Potential Raw Material in Portland Cement Manufacturing, OF-2004-1336; and (5) Lime – Statistical Compendium, by M. Michael Miller.)

Mining & Quarrying – (includes: Mineral Yearbooks (1932-1993), (1994-2007); Mineral Industry Surveys: Active Metal and Industrial Mineral Underground Mines in the United States in 2007.

Stone (Crushed) – Statistics and Information(includes: Mineral Commodity Summaries (1996-2010); Mineral Yearbooks (1932-1993), (1994-2007); Mineral Industry Surveys (2008 and 2009); Directories: (1) 2003 Directory of State Listings of Crushed Stone and Sand and Gravel Producers; (2) Directory of Principal Construction Aggregates Producers in the United States in 2007; (3) Directory of Principal Crushed Stone Producers in the United States in 2007; and Special Publications, which includes: (1) Historical Statistics for Mineral Commodities in the United States, OF-01-006; (2) Crushed Stone; Natural Aggregates–Foundation of America’s Future, FS144-97, and (3) Statistical Compendium – Crushed Stone.

Stone (Dimension) – Statistics and Information(includes: Mineral Commodity Summaries (1996-2010), Mineral Yearbooks (1932-1993), (1994-2007), and Special Publications, which includes: (1) Historical Statistics for Mineral and Material Commodities in the United States (Data Series 140) – Dimension Stone.

Some other stone commodities: Calcareous Marl (See Dimension Stone), Calcium Carbonate (See Crushed Stone), Granite(See Crushed Stone and Dimension Stone), Limestone (See Crushed Stoneand Dimension Stone), Marble (See Crushed Stone and Dimension Stone), Quartzite (See Crushed Stone and Dimension Stone), Sandstone (See Crushed Stone and Dimension Stone), Slate (See Crushed Stone and Dimension Stone), and Traprock (See Dimension Stone).