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‘A word and a stone cannot be recalled’•

| 09 Sep 2013 | 01:31
    Photo provided by Dr. Richard Hull. The entrance to old stone grist mill at Pacem in Terris is an example of the long history of stone working in Warwick.
    Photo provided by Dr. Richard Hull. The entrance to old stone grist mill at Pacem in Terris is an example of the long history of stone working in Warwick.
    Photo provided by Dr. Richard Hull The Sanford Memorial Fountain. circa 1904.
    Photo provided by Dr. Richard Hull The Sanford Memorial Fountain. circa 1904.
    Photo provided by Dr. Richard Hull The entrance to Warwick Cemetery.
    Photo provided by Dr. Richard Hull The entrance to Warwick Cemetery.

Warwick’s stone heritage is endangered.

Just in the last decade several prehistoric Indian quarries have been bulldozed into oblivion. More than a dozen stone houses have fallen into serious disrepair, some of them built by Revolutionary War patriots.

All but one of our historic stone bridges have been demolished. Stone silos, stone furnaces, stone dams, roadway milestones, cemetery obelisks, and stone monuments have been damaged by motorists and vandals.

On the other hand, stone-working is experiencing a local renaissance as homeowners are using stone for their garden walls and patios, kitchen counter tops, floors, driveways, benches and building facades.

This paradox calls out for greater public appreciation and awareness of our rich and fascinating history of stone working in Warwick. Come to a photographic exhibition on our stone heritage in the Town Hall opening on Monday, Sept. 16, at 6:30 p.m. followed by a lecture by your town historian on the topic at 7 p.m.

Prof. Richard W. Hull
Warwick Town Historian


• Spanish proverb