Port Deposit Heritage Corporation, Inc.
PAW PAW MUSEUM ~ 98 NORTH MAIN STREET
PO Box 101, Port Deposit MD 21904

Contact Information:
Judy A. Leonard, PDHC President, 410-378-2940 or leonardjmd@aol.com
Erika L. Quesenbery, Paw Paw Museum Curator, 717-456-2957 or inkling@localnet.com

Port Deposit Heritage Corporation
Announces release of
"We called it Everlasting Granite and by Golly it is!"
Book features Historical stories of Port Deposit Granite

PORT DEPOSIT - Situated along the shores of the Susquehanna River in Cecil County Maryland, Port Deposit was once a center for commerce between Baltimore and Philadelphia. Its shoreline speckled with wharfs and warehouses sustained a thriving commercial community. Mills, factories, fisheries and lumberyards provided a means to enrich and support local and immigrant families making Port Deposit the eighth largest city in Maryland by the eve of the Civil War.

While the lumber floating down the river provided the county with building materials, one of Port Deposit's own industries produced building material of unmatched quality. By the early nineteenth century the granite deposits of the town were, from an engineering standpoint, to have few rivals. It was, however, the tone and texture of the stone that made it a favorite aesthetic choice. The quarries provided the granite used for many churches, schools, and buildings in Baltimore, Washington and Philadelphia. Many of Port's buildings are constructed of granite. Nowhere in the country was there a stronger masonry building tradition than in this small town along the Susquehanna.

In the pages that follow, list will serve us to notice that we have experienced the beauty of Port Deposit granite as visitors and neighbors to the array of structures adorned by this stone. And while we admire the beautiful structures that rise as monuments to our granite, know that they stand as tribute to those who labored to craft each block.

These writings offer a glimpse of the life surrounding the stone. Readers will surely delight in the prank of a young boy whose Italian immigrant parents made their home among the other "dirt bank" families - all quarry workers. Becoming a quarry worker himself, the young boy would grow to become Mayor of Perryville, a neighboring town. The life-filled tales of the passage from trickster to politician will enlighten all who turn these pages.

The grandson of Irish immigrants who worked in the "company store" tells of numerous tasks in his charge among which was ice cream testing. The daughter of a Scotsman, who came to Port Deposit when he was four-years old, tells of her father's dedication to "his church and the Masonic order..." and how, at the age of 83, he designed and built the granite bulletin board at the Tome Memorial Methodist Church.

Each interview helps to give rise to a picture of the daily life that grew out of the stone industry in Port Deposit. Because of the contributions of these people and so many more yet untold, we are rewarded with a newfound ability to appreciate not only the masonry architecture of a structure but also the individual value of each hand that touched the stone.
We are indebted to Mrs. Nancy Roberts for her willingness to share her work. Her skillful undertaking has given new life to "The Everlasting Granite."

Judy A. Leonard, President Port Deposit Heritage Corporation
Glen Longacre, Past President
Grace Humphries, Founder

The book may also be purchased by sending a check or money order for $40 (to cover the cost of shipping and handling) to: