The company first came about when three gentlemen - James M. Boutwell, George B. Milne and Harvey W. Varnum - pooled their resources and formed the Boutwell, Milne & Varnum Co., which was only involved in the quarrying of granite. The company soon ran a national marketing campaign to promote the quality of its product. It then adopted the logo “Rock of Ages,†which it registered with the federal government in 1914. In 1925, it was decided that this slogan would be the company's new name, due to the positive response it had received.
Despite the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and other uncertain times, Rock of Ages pressed on and has continually expanded its business. Today, Rock of Ages Corp. is a publicly held company traded on the NASDAQ Exchange (ROAC), and is considered to be among the largest memorial manufacturers. “Rock of Ages is the largest quarrier of dimension stone in North America - quarrying over 1 million cubic feet of saleable material annually,†said Robert Campo, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, adding that the Bethel quarry produces 225,000 cubic feet of blocks per year.