Committed to harvesting indigenous resources: North Carolina Granite Corp.
Celebrating 125 years of business this year, North Carolina Granite Corp. of Mount Airy, NC, has become a renowned quarrier of natural stone products and is committed to sustainable practices
More than 140 years ago in 1872, a farmer by the name of John Gilmer purchased several thousand acres of land covering what is now part of Mount Airy, NC, and the village of Flat Rock, NC. After discovering the tract of land contained 40 acres of bare rock, which is known by locals as “The Rock,” he demanded to be reimbursed for the “useless” portion of his land. This “useless” portion of land is now the base of the world’s largest open-faced granite quarry, owned and operated by North Carolina Granite Corp. (NCGC), a distinguished quarrier and producer of granite and other natural stone products.
In 1889, almost two decades after Gilmer purchased “The Rock,” the old Cape Fear and Yadkin Valley Railroad was built from Greensboro to Mount Airy, NC. A firm of builders, Thomas Woodruff and Sons, who were commissioned to construct several railroad stations along the way, quickly learned about “The Rock” and purchased it from Gilmer for only $5,000. Hence, the quarry is historically known as “changing hands for nothing.” The Woodruff family then bought additional land surrounding “The Rock” to build cutting plants and facilities; quarrying began in 1889 and has continued since without interruption.