[CLOSED CAPTIONING HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY CARDI'S FURNITURE AND MATTRESSES] >> IN 1845, A WOMAN LEFT HER FAMILY HOME HERE IN LEDYARD, CONNECTICUT AND SET OUT ON A JOURNEY THAT WOULD FOREVER CHANGE A NEARBY COMMUNITY.

SARAH SMITH, WIFE OF SEA CAPTAIN SMITH, SET OUT ALONE ON HORSEBACK, MAKING THE 20-MILE JOURNEY TO WESTERLY, RHODE ISLAND, IN JUST ONE DAY.

SARAH WAS CARRYING $2,000 IN HER SADDLE BAG, MONEY THAT SHE WAS BRINGING TO HER 31-YEAR-OLD SON, ORLANDO, WHO NEEDED IT FOR A DOWNPAYMENTEN A PIECE OF LAND.

>> HIS MOTHER HAD BEEN TRYING TO GET HIM TO SETTLE DOWN FOR YEARS, TRIED BUYING A FARM IN CONNECTICUT, ANOTHER PLACE OUT IN OHIO.

HE JUST WOULDN'T SETTLE DOWN.

HE CAME HOME, IS SET UP A SMALL GRANITE OPERATION ON MECHANIC STREET AND THEY MADE STEPS AND FOUNDATIONS AND THAT KIND OF THING.

HE WAS LOOKING FOR GRANITE AS HIS RAW MATERIAL, AND HE DISCOVERED AN OUTCROPPING OF GRANITE OVER HERE IN WESTERLY ON GRANITE STREET, AND HE WANTED TO BUY THIS FARM.

SO HIS MOTHER WAS SO THRILLED, HE FINALLY HAD A FOCUS FOR HIS LIFE, AND SHORTLY THEREAFTER ORLANDO MARRIED EMILINE GALLUP.

>> SMITH AND HIS NEW WIFE PLANNED TO MOVE INTO THE OLD BABCOCK HOME BUT IT WAS IN NEED OF REPAIR.

USING GRANITE FOUND ON THE PROPERTY, ORLANDO AND EMILINE'S FATHER REBUILT THE FOUNDATION AND MADE OTHER CHANGES TO THE HOUSE.

ORLANDO MOVED HIS MASONRY BUSINESS FROM ACROSS THE RIVER TO THE TOP OF RHODES HILL IN WESTERLY.

SOME OF HIS EARLY GRANITE WORK INCLUDED CURB STONE THAT WAS PURCHASED BY THE CITY OF FALL RIVER AND BY THE STATE OF RHODE ISLAND.

>> THEY WERE BUILDING FOUNDATIONS FOR HOUSES, STEPS, HITCHING POSTS.

NO MONUMENTS LIKE WE KNOW TODAY.

>> OVER TIME, ORLANDO SHIFTED HIS FOCUS FROM MASONRY WORK AND THE SMITH GRANITE COMPANY BEGAN TO CONCENTRATE MORE ON FORMAL MONUMENTS.

ORLANDO WORKED NEXT TO THE OUTCROPPING ALONGSIDE HIS FRIEND WILLIAM, WHO HAD EXPERTISE IN GRANITE MONUMENTS.

>> THEY GOT TOGETHER.

THEY WORKED AND HE WAS THE FELLOW THAT CAME AND BROUGHT THE INFORMATION HOW TO MAKE MONUMENTS, HOW TO MAKE IT FINISH.

>> BUT THEIR PARTNERSHIP ENDED SUDDENLY WITH THE DEATH OF ORLANDO SMITH IN 1859 AT THE AGE OF 50.

EMILINE WAS FACED WITH RUNNING A FARM, RAISING FOUR SMALL CHILDREN, AND OVERSEEING A GROWING BUSINESS.

SHE NEEDED BURDICK TO STAY ON.

>> SHE KNEW HIM AND ASKED HIM IF HE WOULD RUN THE BUSINESS, THE ESTATE OF ORLANDO SMITH, IS WHAT THEY CALLED IT.

SO ALL THE BUSINESS WENT THROUGH HIS ESTATE, AND SHE RAN THE BUSINESS.

SHE OWNED EVERYTHING.

SHE OWNED OXEN.

SHE OWNED THE STONE, THE HOUSE, EVERYTHING.

HE MANAGED IT.

HE WENT ON TO BECOME QUITE -- QUITE A BUSINESSMAN.

>> THE VIEW TODAY FROM WHAT WAS ONCE KNOWN AS QUARRY HILL IS MUCH DIFFERENT FROM WHAT IT WAS DURING THE HEYDAY OF THE GRANITE INDUSTRY.

NUMEROUS QUARRIES OPENED FROM WESTERLY TO BRADFORD IN THE YEARS FOLLOWING ORLANDO'S GRANITE DISCOVERY.

QUARRYING WAS DANGEROUS WORK AND MUSCLE POWER WAS USED TO PERFORM MANY DIFFICULT JOBS.

>> WORKING IN A QUARRY WAS UNBELIEVABLY HARD WORK.

THE MEN HAVING TO GO DOWN THOSE RICKETY LADDERS AND GO DOWN AND THEN SWING THOSE IMPLEMENTS OR LIFT OR PULL OR DRILL OR WHATEVER IT WAS.

THAT WAS GRUESOME LABOR.

DON'T FORGET, YOU HAD ALL THOSE AUXILIARY PEOPLE.

YOU HAD THE YOUNG BOYS WHO CARRIED THE TOOLS ALL DAY LONG TO THE BLACKSMITHS IN BACK AND THE BLACKSMITHS WOULD BE WORKING SO HARD, KEEPING THOSE TOOLS SHARP, AND THE BOYS RUNNING BACK AND TAKING THEM BACK, BECAUSE EVERYBODY INSISTED ON USING HIS OWN TOOLS.

>> ALL TYPES OF WESTERLY GRANITE HAVE TO BE CARRIED IN LAYERS BECAUSE OF THE WAY IT WAS FORMED.

GRANITE LIES IN HORIZONTAL BEDS OR STRATA.

THE DEPTH OF THE BED DETERMINES THE SIZE OF THE STONE THAT WILL COME OUT OF IT.

RICHARD COMOLLI, A SECOND GENERATION MASTER CARVER IN HIS OWN RYE, SAYS FINDING THE RIGHT AREA OF THE HOLE IS KEY.

>> FIRST YOU HAVE TO FIND AN AREA THAT THE GRANITE IS GOOD.

A LOT OF TIMES, MAYBE THERE MAY BE FAILURE.

AND THEN THEY CLAIM THE FIRST TWO LAYERS IN THE QUARRY ARE NOT THE BEST, SO THEY HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THEY GET TO THE SECOND OR THIRD LAYER BECAUSE WATER RUNS THROUGH.

IRON STAINS.

SO THEN YOU GET DEEPER, SUPPOSED TO BE A LITTLE BETTER.

AND THEN TODAY, YOU KNOW, THEY GOT SAWS IN QUARRIES, SO THEY TRY TO TAKE OUT BLOCKS.

BY HAND THEY PROBABLY DRILL TWO OR THREE HOLES AND PUT SOME POWDER AND IT CAME OUT LIKE AN AIRPLANE, WASTED SO MUCH STONE YEARS AGO.

>> WESTERLY GRANITE IS A FINE-GRAINED GRANITE OF UNIFORM TEXT YOU ARE -- TEXTURE, A TEXTURE MUCH LIKE GRAN LATED SUGAR, FORMED BY THE COOLING OF MOLTEN MAGMA THREE TO FIVE MILES BELOW THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH.

AS THE MAGMA BODY COOLED IT BEGAN TO CONTRACT AND DEVELOP PROMINENT CRACKS CALLED JOINTS.

BLOCKS OF GRANITE WERE QUARRIED FROM THESE SHEETS OR LAYERS.

THE SULLIVAN GRANITE QUARRY WAS ONE OF THE SITES THAT EMPLOYED HUNDREDS OF WORKERS AND EXPANDED QUICKLY TO MEET THE GROWING DEMAND FOR GRANITE BEING USED FOR MONUMENTS AND MAUSOLEUMS.

>> IN 1907, MY GRANDFATHER CAME TO WESTERLY, STARTED BUYING UP SOME QUARRIES IN THE BRADFORD AREA, AND LATER ON, I THINK AROUND 1940, MY FATHER STARTED IN THE BUSINESS.

HE HAD TO GO OFF TO WAR.

AFTER THE WAR, HE CAME BACK AND HE ASSISTED MY GRANDFATHER, AND THEY RAN SULLIVAN GRANITE.

>> THE SULLIVAN QUARRY WAS LOCATED ON QUARRY ROAD IN BRADFORD.

HE HAD ABOUT 700 TO 800 ACRES OF LAND AND THEN STARTED WORKING THE HOLES.

>> MASSIVE PIECES OF GRANITE WOULD HAVE TO BE QUARRIED TO FULFILL ORDERS THAT CAME INTO THE GRANITE COMPANIES.

MEN WOULD HAVE TO DRILL 50 FEET BELOW THE SURFACE TO FIND LEDGES THAT COULD PRODUCE THE SIZE STONE THAT WAS NEEDED.

THE METHOD CHOSEN TO FREE THE STONE WAS IMPORTANT, SO THE STONE WOULD NOT CRACK.

>> WORKING IN THE GRANITE INDUSTRY IS A TOUGH LIFE.

TO WORK IN THE WINTERTIME WHEN IT WAS COLD, YOU DIDN'T WANT TO BE TOO CLOSE TO THE HEATING SOURCE IN THE CUTTING SHED.

YOU DIDN'T WANT TO BE TOO FAR AWAY.

IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT.

>> THE MEN COULD NOT WORK OUT IN THE WINTERTIME BECAUSE THE ICE ON THE ROCKS AND THE COLD OF THE ROCKS IF THEY WERE SPLITTING OR BLASTING, SOMETIMES THAT ICE IN THE ROCKS WOULD BE UNCONTROLLABLE, NEVER MIND SLIPPING ON THE ROCKS AND SLIPPING INTO THE QUARRY.

THE ONLY QUARRY WHERE THEY COULD WORK ALL WINTER WAS THE SULLIVAN QUARRY BECAUSE THEY HAD GONE UNDERNEATH SO THEY WERE WORKING UNDER THE OVERHANG.

SUMMERTIMES WERE HOT AND GRUELING, WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT THE SWEAT THAT MUST HAVE POURED OFF THEIR BODIES WHEN THEY WERE IN THOSE QUARRIES, JUST FANTASTIC.

AND INSIDE THE SHEDS THEMSELVES, THEY WERE PRACTICALLY WORKING ON TOP OF EACH OTHER, SO THEIR CHISELS WERE CHIPPING OFF THESE CHIPS THAT FLEW INTO OTHER PEOPLE'S FACES AND THE DUST WAS FILLED.

THERE ARE STORIES ABOUT MEN PUTTING LAMBS WOOL IN THEIR NOSTRILS TO KEEP FROM BREATHING THE STONE DUST.

>> THE MEN IN THE QUARRIES EACH HAD DIFFERENT SKILL SETS.

DRILLERS SPECIALIZED IN MAKING THE DRILL HOLES TO FREE THE STONE, FIRST BY HAND, THEN BY STEAM DRILLS.

ENGINEERS OPERATED THE ENGINES FOR THE CRANES AND DERRICKS THAT WOULD HARNESS THE GRANITE THAT COULD WEIGH OVER A TON.

>> WHEN WE FIRST STARTED THIS BUSINESS, IT WAS MUSCLE POWERED, MAN OR BEAST.

WE HAVE PICTURES OF A LINE OF IRISHMEN, THEY CALL IT THE IRISH DRILL LINE, HAMMERING THE DRILLS TO GET THE GRANITE READY TO QUARRY.

LATER ON, WE HAD PNEUMATIC TOOLS AND STEAM TOOLS, BUT INITIALLY IT WAS MAN AND BEAST.

>> BY 1892 MORE THAN HALF OF THE TOWN'S P,000 RESIDENTS HAD A -- 7,000 RESIDENTS HAD A CONNECTION TO THE GRANITE INDUSTRY AND WORKED IN QUARRY HILL.

BOTH DR. ELLEN MADISON AND JOHN KODO RIRKS HAVE FAMILY TIES TO THE INDUSTRY AND UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT IT HAD ON THE COMMUNITY BACK THEN AND NOW.

>> THIS WAS A HUGE INDUSTRY IN THE TOWN OF WESTERLY.

IT IS THE ENGINE OF THE ECONOMY, FOR SO MANY YEARS HERE IN WESTERLY, ALONG WITH THE TEXTILE MILLS.

I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT FOR US TO KNOW WHERE WE'VE BEEN SO THAT WE CAN KNOW WHERE WE ARE AND THEN WHERE WE GOING IN THE FUTURE.

THAT HERITAGE IS SOMETHING THAT'S SHARED BY SO MANY DIFFERENT ETHNIC GROUPS HERE IN WESTERLY, SO MANY FAMILIES.

>> WE HAVE BEEN AMAZED AT THE OUTPOURING OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE COME FORWARD TO PROVIDE US WITH BOOKS AND -- TO TELL US HOW THEIR GRANDFATHERS WORKED IN THE QUARRIES AND WHAT IT WAS LIKE TO ACTUALLY BE IN THE HOME OF A GRANITE WORKER.

IT WAS A BIG PART OF WESTERLY, AND I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT PEOPLE DON'T FORGET THAT.

>> ORLANDO SMITH'S DISCOVERY WOULD CHANGE THE HISTORY OF THE TOWN AND HAVE A SIGNIFICANT ECONOMIC IMPACT ON THE AREA.

THE TRANSITION FROM FARM TOWN TO MILL TOWN WAS COMMON THROUGHOUT NEW ENGLAND AT THIS TIME, AND WITH SMITH'S DISCOVERY OF GRANITE OUTCROPPINGS, IT ASSURED A MORE DIVERSIFIED ECONOMY FOR THE TOWN AND THE REGION.

>> A LOT OF THINGS CAME TOGETHER AT THIS TIME.

THEY HAD DISCOVERED THIS WONDERFUL QUALITY OF GRANITE HERE IN WESTERLY.

THERE WAS A MOVEMENT AFOOT TO DEVELOP THESE RURAL CEMETERIES INSTEAD OF CHURCHYARD CEMETERIES, THERE WERE THESE PARKLIKE CEMETERIES THAT WERE A SETTING FOR MUCH MORE ELABORATE MONUMENTS.

AND AS THE INDUSTRY DEVELOPED, WE HAD PEOPLE DRAWN HERE BY THOSE TWO FACTORS, AND SO THE MOMENTUM BEGAN TO BUILD, TO PROVIDE A WONDERFUL BASIS FOR ABOUT 100 YEARS OF REALLY SUPERB WORK COMING OUT OF WESTERLY.

>> A LARGE NUMBER OF THE WORKERS IMMIGRATED FROM ACROSS EUROPE TO WORK IN THE MILLS AND THE QUARRIES.

STARTING IN THE 1850'S, THE IRISH CAME AND OFTEN WORKED THE DRILL LINES.

>> THERE WERE SEVERAL ETHNIC GROUPS THAT WORKED HERE IN THE QUARRY INDUSTRY.

THE IRISH, THE SCOTCH, THE ITALIANS, AND THE YANKEES.

THE FINNS, ALL OF THESE WERE DIFFERENT ETHNIC GROUPS THAT CAME AND WORKED.

THERE WAS A REAL HIERARCHY IN WORKERS.

>> THE WAY THE NEW ENGLAND GRANITE WORKED.

HE WOULD GO TO EUROPE AND GET PEOPLE TO COME HERE, WORKERS, CARVERS.

I AM QUITE SURE THE SMITH GRANITE COMPANY PROBABLY DID THE SAME THING.

I THINK THAT WAS THE START OF IT, FIRST PEOPLE TO GET THE PEOPLE HERE TO DO THIS WORK.

THEN AFTER YOU HAD THE MIGRATION IN THE 1890'S, AND WELL, I CAME AND I WAS A CARVER AND I HAD A FRIEND, COME ON OVER.

I THINK THAT'S HOW IT STARTED.

>> IT'S HARD TO TELL FROM THE CENSUS RECORDS.

THEY WORKED FOR THE GRANITE COMPANY.

THIS COULD MEAN THEY DID ANYTHING FROM QUARRYING TO BLACKSMITHING TO GRANITE CUTTING, TO CARVING STATUES.

>> ONCE HERE, THEY SET UP SHOP ALONGSIDE THE CUTTING SHEDS AND THESE HIGHLY SKILLED BLACKSMITHS, SCUP TORES, AND DESIGNERS PRACTICED THEIR CRAFT.

THE FAMILY SETTLED IN DIFFERENT AREAS OF TOWN CREATING NEIGHBORHOODS, SHARING ETHNIC TRADITIONS AND INFLUENCING THE RELIGIOUS DEVELOPMENT OF WESTERLY.

>> ONE TIME 400 MEN WORKED IN NEW ENGLAND QUARRIES AND 400 MORE WORKED IN THE SMITH QUARRIES.

IN THE SHEDS.

AT THE END OF THE DAY, 800 MEN COME DOWN OFF THE HILL.

THAT WAS QUITE A THING.

NO RESPECTABLE LADY WOULD BE ON THE STREET UNTIL THEY ALL WENT BY.

THE IRISH LIVED ACROSS THE RIVER .

THE ITALIAN PEOPLE WERE UP NORTH.

SCOTTISH PEOPLE WERE ON THE SIDE OF THE HILL HERE.

QUITE A COMMUNITY.

WHAT'S INTERESTING, WE ARE TALKING GRANITE BUT RIGHT ALONGSIDE OF IT IS THE RELIGIOUS DEVELOPMENT OF THE TOWN, OF THE CHRISTIAN RELIGION.

WHEN IT FIRST STARTED, THERE WAS NO CATHOLIC CHURCH HERE.

THE FIRST ONE OF COURSE WAS ACROSS THE RIVER.

THEN THE ONE HERE -- THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION WAS MADE WITH A BLUE STONE FROM SMITS.

>> MOST OF THE ITALIANS SETTLED IN THE NORTH END OF TOWN FILLING THE NEIGHBORHOOD WITH FAMILY, MUSIC AND GOOD FOOD.

>> THERE ARE WONDERFUL STORIES ABOUT KIDS BRINGING THEIR LUNCHES TO THEIR DADS, AND THE -- THIS CROSSED ALL OF THE ETHNIC GROUPS.

THE THING THAT WAS DIFFERENT WAS WHAT THE MEN WERE EATING.

ON BENEFIT STREET WHERE THE SCOTS LIVED, THOSE KIDS WOULD GET OUT OF SCHOOL AND TAKE THE LUNCHES TO THEIR FATHERS AND YOU'D HAVE SCOTTISH FOOD.

THEN THE ITALIANS, YOU'D HEAR ABOUT THE RAW EGGS THAT WERE BROUGHT UP AND EATEN.

>> EACH ETHNIC GROUP WOULD BRING THESE LUNCH BOXES TO THEIR DADS AT LUNCHTIME.

AND I THINK THAT'S KIND OF NICE.

>> AS MORE AND MORE FAMILIES MOVED TO THE AREA, THERE WAS A NEED TO EDUCATE BOTH THE IMMIGRANT AND LOCAL CHILDREN.

EMILINE SMITH DEEDED THE TOWN OF WESTERLY, LAND ON QUARRY HILL, TO BE USED FOR A SCHOOL.

MANY OF THE BOYS WHO ATTENDED THE SCHOOL WERE ALSO BEING GROOMED TO WORK IN THE QUARRIES.

>> THE YOUNG BOYS WHO STARTED TO WORK IN THE QUARRIES -- AND THEY ALL STARTED AT GOPHERS -- WERE PROBABLY ABOUT 12, 13 YEARS OLD, FROM THE PICTURES THAT WE HAVE SEEN OF THEM.

THEY WOULD START AND WORK THEIR WAY UP IN TERMS OF SKILLS.

SO THE FIRST THING THAT THEY WOULD DO WOULD BE TO TAKE THESE TOOLS BACK AND FORTH TO THE BLACKSMITH.

AND THEN GENERALLY THEY WOULD WORK THEIR WAY UP THE LADDER, DEPENDING UPON WHAT THEY WERE WELL SUITED FOR.

THE REALLY GROUPED FORCE THAT WAS NEEDED TO WORK IN THE REALLY BY YOUR SIZE, I THINK, AND THE STRENGTH THAT YOU HAD.

THEN THERE WOULD BE AN APPRENTICE SYSTEM, WHERE YOU WOULD LEARN THE CRAFT FROM SOMEBODY WORKING NEXT TO YOU OR WORKING BESIDE YOU.

>> THE QUARRIES AND SHEDS WERE NOT THE ONLY PLACE WORKERS HONE THEIR CRAFT.

MANY UTILIZE THEIR SKILLS AT HOME FOR GRANITE FIREPLACES, FOUNDATIONS AND STONE WALLS.

CARVERS AND CUTTERS FREQUENTLY WORKED ON CEMETERY HEADSTONES AND MONUMENTS FOR THEIR OWN FAMILIES.

A PIECE OF THEIR LEGACY AND CRAFT THAT LIVES ON TODAY.

>> EVERYBODY IS PROUD OF BEING A PART OF THAT GRANITE STORY.

IT DIDN'T MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE WHETHER YOU SUPPORTED THE GRANITE INDUSTRY BY MAKING LEATHER APRONS FOR THE PEOPLE TO WEAR WHO WERE CHIPPING AWAY ON THAT STONE, WHETHER YOUR GRANDFATHER WAS A SHOPKEEPER, WHETHER HE WAS A TEAMSTER WHO OWNED THE CATTLE THAT WORKED IN THE QUARRIES OR WHETHER YOU REALLY TRULY CAME FROM A WONDERFUL STONE CARVING HERITAGE.

BUT EVERYBODY WHO HAD A CONNECTION WAS SO PROUD OF THAT CONNECTION.

>> ISAAC SMITH AND RICHARD COMOLLI ARE LEGENDS OF THE GRANITE INDUSTRY.

FOR GENERATIONS THEIR FAMILIES HAVE WORKED WITH WESTERLY GRANITE AND THEIR KNOWLEDGE AND LOVE OF THE STONE REMAINS STRONG.

>> I AM ISAAC SMITH JR.

I AM THE THIRD ISAAC IN THE FAMILY.

NOW I HAVE A GREAT GRANDSON NAMED ISAAC, SO IT'S STILL IN THE FAMILY.

I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH GRANITE PEOPLE AND GRANITE COMPANIES SINCE I WAS A CHILD.

THERE WAS A MAN THAT LIVED DOWN ON FRANKLIN STREET, AND HE WORKED UP HERE IN SMITHS ON THE MACHINE, VERY DUSTY JOB.

YOU WENT HOME FOR DINNER, AN HOUR AND A QUARTER, YOU HAD TO GO HOME AND GET LUNCH AND COME BACK TO WORK.

HE WOULD GO BY MY HOUSE AND HIS SHOES WOULD BE ALL WHITE FROM DUST, AND AFTER HE HAD GONE BY, I WOULD SCUFF MY FEET IN THE DUST SO I WOULD LOOK LIKE MR. WILLIAMS.

>> IKE SMITH DID GET HIS FEET DIRTY AS A YOUNG MAN DOING ODD JOBS IN THE QUARRIES, LIKE GENERATIONS OF SMITHS BEFORE HIM.

BUT HIS APPRENTICESHIP AS A STONE CUTTER AT SMITH GRANITE HAD TO WAIT UNTIL HE RETURNED HOME FROM THE WAR.

>> HE HAS WONDERFUL STORIES TO TELL ABOUT HIS APPRENTICE DAYS.

THEY WERE GOING TO CUT A SMALL RECTANGULAR MARKER, NOTHING FANCY, JUST MAKE IT THIS DIMENSION BY THIS DIMENSION.

MAKE IT FLAT, SQUARE CORNERS.

AND WHEN THEY GET TO THE CORNER, THEY WOULD SOMETIMES KNOCK OFF A CORNER AND THE FOREMAN WOULD HAVE A BOX NEXT TO THEIR TOOLBOX.

YOU THROW THAT CORNER IN THERE AND EVERY TIME YOU THINK YOU ARE GETTING GOOD YOU LOOK AT THAT BOX AND REMEMBER HOW MANY CORNERS YOU KNOCKED OFF.

IT WAS A TOUGH WAY.

THEY DIDN'T REALLY CARE ABOUT YOUR SELF-IMAGE.

YOU LEARNED THE HARD WAY.

IT WAS THE SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS.

>> I FOUND THESE HERE.

>> IKE WORKED AS A STONE CUTTER UNTIL 1960 AND DEVELOPED A TALENT HISTORIANS ADMIRE.

>> HE WORKED AT SMITH GRANITE COMPANY.

HE WORKED FOR THE JOSEPH CADURI COMPANY AND THE MONUMENT COMPANY.

>> IKE'S FRIEND RICHARD COMOLLI HAS DEVELOPED HIS OWN TALENT AND HIS LOVE OF GRANITE HAS BEEN PASSED DOWN FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION.

IT ALL STARTED IN ITALY.

>> MY FATHER CAME FROM THE OLD COUNTRY AT 16, GRADUATING FROM SCHOOL IN MODELING.

WE FOUND OUT IN LATER YEARS HE WAS NUMBER ONE IN HIS CLASS.

HIS BROTHER-IN-LAW WAS A PROFESSOR IN THE SCHOOL SO I DON'T KNOW IF THAT HELPED.

THEN I THINK PROBABLY 1934, HE CAME TO WESTERLY.

WHEN HE CAME, HE CAME TO WORK FOR THE SMITH GRANITE COMPANY.

IT WAS IN THE BLOOD LINE.

>> HE BEGAN STONE CUTTING IN WESTERLY AFTER HE WAS DISCHARGED FROM THE ARMY.

HE DEVELOPED HIS CUTTING AND CARVING SKILLS BY WORKING ALONGSIDE WELL RESPECTED LOCAL CARVERS.

LIKE SMITH, HE CAN TELL YOU WHO CARVED SOME OF WESTERLY'S GREATEST MONUMENTS.

>> THIS OLDER STONE CARVER KNEW EXACTLY THIS MONUMENT, WHO DID THIS, WHO DID THAT.

SOME OF THE FINER DETAILS OF THE WESTERLY STONE, HOW THINGS WERE CARVED.

WHY STONE CARVERS OF THE PERIOD ENJOYED CARVING WESTERLY MORE THAN THEY -- WHY HE DIDN'T LIKE BERRY GRANITE AND THAT TYPE OF INFORMATION.

TALKING TO MR. COMOLLI WAS GREAT.

>> TOGETHER THESE TWO MEN HAVE WITNESSED WHAT WE WILL PROBABLY NEVER SEE AGAIN, A TOWN THAT WAS UNITED AND SUSTAINED BY ONE INDUSTRY.

THEY ARE THE LAST OF A LONG LINE OF GRANITE WORKERS THAT TOUCHED THE STONE BEFORE IT CAME OUT OF THE GROUND AND WORKED IT TO IS ITS FINAL STATE, WESTERLY'S GRANITE MEN.

MOST PEOPLE VISIT CEMETERIES TO HONOR LOVED ONES, BUT A WALK THROUGH RIVER BEND CEMETERY IN WESTERLY WITH RICHARD COMOLLI IS A COMBINED ART AND HISTORY LESSON IN A PLACE HE IS VERY COMFORTABLE IN.

>> I CAN ALMOST GO TO A CEMETERY IN A NEW PARK AND TELL YOU WHO CARVED THINGS.

EVERY CARVER HAS A DIFFERENT HAND.

IT'S LIKE A PAINTER.

EVERY PAINTER AND EVERY CARVER HAD A TECHNIQUE.

THE STATUE WAS ON GRANITE FROM THE OLD CHAPMAN QUARRY AND THE RED IS A QUARRY NEAR THERE.

THAT'S LIKE THE TOWN HALL.

BUT THAT THERE, SEE IF YOU MADE IT OUT OF RED, YOU WOULDN'T GET THE DETAIL.

THAT'S WHY WESTERLY GRANITE WAS SO, SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE OF THE FINE GRAIN.

YOU DON'T SEE ANY MICA IN IT OR ANYTHING.

IT'S ALMOST PERFECT.

A LOT OF DELICATE WORK ON THIS.

YOU LOOK AT THE WINGS HERE, THE DETAIL HE PUT IN THEM.

THE DETAIL IN THIS.

I AM AMAZED.

THE GUY MUST HAVE SPENT A YEAR ON IT.

MY GOD, IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL.

OF COURSE, I APPRECIATE IT.

I SEE ALL THE DETAIL AND HOW CAREFUL YOU HAD TO BE.

UNBELIEVABLE.

YOU CAN ALMOST SEE THE ANATOMY UNDERNEATH IT.

YOU CAN SEE THE SHAPE OF THE WOMAN, YOU KNOW?

THIS IS STONE YOU ARE WORKING WITH.

LOOK AT THIS HAND, HOW DELICATE.

LOOK AT THIS ONE HERE.

MY GOD, UNBELIEVABLE.

SHE'S PRETTY.

HE DID A GOOD JOB ON THIS.

BEAUTIFUL.

LOOK HOW DELICATE THIS THING IS.

OH, MY GOD, LOOK AT THIS.

HE HAD TO FINISH HERE BEFORE HE WENT BACK HERE.

HE HAD TO FINISH BECAUSE IF YOU COULDN'T COME OUT HERE, HE WOULD HAVE BROKEN OFF.

YEARS AGO SOMETHING LIKE THIS, THEY PROBABLY WOULD HAVE MADE A CLAY MODEL, THEN CAST IT IN PLASTER BECAUSE THE GUY -- WHEN HE STARTS HE HAS A BLOCK OF GRANITE.

BEFORE HE STARTS IT, YOU HAVE TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S ALL IN THERE.

THEN YOU ROUGH IT ALL OUT WITHIN A HALF AN INCH, 3/4, BEFORE YOU START FINISHING.

SO EVERYTHING YOU DO, YOU SUBTRACT AND YOU CAN'T ADD.

IF YOU TAKE OFF A FINGER HERE, THERE IS NO WAY OF PUTTING IT ON.

THIS WAS A BEAUTY.

THIS SHOULD BE IN A MUSEUM.

THAT'S LIKE A PAINTING.

YOU CAN PAINT OVER IT, BUT THIS YOU CAN'T.

I THINK GRANITE AND MARBLE SCULPTURE ARE PROBABLY THE HARDEST FORM OF ART TO MAKE MYSELF.

>> AT THE HEIGHT OF THE GRANITE ERA, WORK HAD TRANSITIONED FROM THE PRACTICAL TO THE ARTISTIC.

JOSEPH NEWELL AND COMPANY, NEW ENGLAND GRANITE WORKS AND SMITH GRANITE WERE THE THREE DOMINANT COMPANIES OPERATING BOTH QUARRIES AND CUTTING SHEDS.

>> A QUARRY IS A HOLE IN THE GROUND, AND YOU HAVE TO WORK IN THAT HOLE TO CUT AND HEFT HUGE AMOUNTS OF STONE OUT OF THAT QUARRY.

THEN THOSE PIECES OF STONE ARE BROUGHT INTO THE CUTTING SHED AND YOU TAKE THAT BLOCK OF GRANITE AND YOU JUST CUT IT DOWN TO WHATEVER SIZE YOU NEED.

IF IT'S JUST A RECTANGULAR SHAPE, IT HAS TO BE CUT DOWN WITH A SURFACING MACHINE OR A WIRE SYSTEM THAT WOULD SHAVE IT TO THE FINAL SIZE.

AND THEN OF COURSE YOU WOULD HAVE THE STONE CARVERS THAT WOULD DO, YOU KNOW, THE FINISHED WORK AND WORK ON A -- FROM A PLASTER MODEL TO THE ULTIMATE SHAPE OF THE FINISHED PRODUCT.

>> THAT FINISHED PRODUCT MADE OF WESTERLY GRANITE WAS SOUGHT AFTER FOR THE FINEST MONUMENTS AND HEADSTONES.

PARKLIKE CEMETERIES WERE COMING INTO VOGUE, AND IT WAS THE WEALTHY AND THE RICH AND FAMOUS THAT HAD THE MONEY TO PURCHASE THEM TO LEAVE A LASTING LEGACY.

>> IT'S JUST NICE TO LEAVE SOMETHING BEHIND SO THAT PEOPLE KNOW YOU WERE HERE.

THAT WAS ONE OF THE THINGS PEOPLE OFTEN ASK ME.

WHY DID THE INDUSTRY BOOM?

WE HAD GOOD QUALITY RAW MATERIAL.

WE HAD A POOL OF WONDERFUL CRAFTSMEN FROM EUROPE THAT IMMIGRATED TO THE UNITED STATES AND WERE DRAWN TO WESTERLY BECAUSE OF ITS REPUTATION, AND THE VICTORIAN SPENDING HABITS WERE DIFFERENT THAN THEY ARE TODAY.

NOW YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A HOME AND A CAR THAT INDICATE YOUR WEALTH STATUS.

IN THOSE DAYS, IT WAS THE KIND OF MEMORIAL YOU DID IN THE CEMETERY.

YOU LOOK AT SOME OF THE MONUMENTS.

THEY'RE JUST ELABORATE BEYOND WORDS AND MAKE A BOLD STATEMENT.

THAT WAS THE STYLE THEN.

>> WESTERLY GRANITE'S UNIFORM COLOR, FINE GRAIN AND ITS STRENGTH MADE IT PERFECT FOR CARVING MANY OF THE ORNATE MONUMENTS AND MAUSOLEUMS THAT CAN BE SEEN IN PLACES LIKE WOODLAWN CEMETERY IN NEW YORK.

>> WHEN WOODLAWN WAS ESTABLISHED IN 1863, WE WERE ACTUALLY WESTCHESTER COUNTY AND BECAME THE BRONX.

THE CEMETERY IS 400 ACRES, 310,000 PEOPLE ARE BURIED HERE AND WE BECAME KNOWN AS THE PLACE FOR THE RICH AND FAMOUS DURING THE GILDED AGE.

THAT'S WHY WE HAVE SO MANY OF THESE MAGNIFICENT MAUSOLEUMS, THE LARGEST IN THE COUNTRY.

>> ONE OF THE FINEST PIECES TO COME OUT OF WESTERLY IS THE MAUSOLEUM PRODUCED BY THE JOSEPH CODURI COMPANY.

>> IT'S PROBABLY THE MOST ELABORATE BECAUSE OF -- IT HAS HUGE COLUMNS.

IT'S A DOME STRUCTURE.

IT HAS A CELTIC CROSS.

IT HAS STATUES.

IT HAS PEDESTALS.

IT'S MASSIVE AND VERY ELABORATE.

THE KIND OF ARTISTRY THAT IS REALLY NOT CAPABLE OF BEING DUPLICATED TODAY.

>> WE HAD ASSUMED THAT ALL OUR WESTERLY PIECES WERE OF THE LATE 19TH CENTURY.

THEN IT WAS THROUGH JOHN CODURI WHO SHOWED US IMAGES SHOWING THAT HIS FAMILY TRADITION WAS TO CONTINUE IN THE QUARRIES AND BRING GREAT THINGS TO WOODLAWN.

IT COST $127,000 TO BUILD THIS MAUSOLEUM THAT'S WORTH MILLIONS TODAY.

MAGNIFICENT PIECE, VERY LIGHT GRANITE.

THAT CAME OUT OF CODURI.

>> IT'S ONE OF THE LARGEST PIECES TO COME OUT OF THE SMITH GRANITE COMPANY.

WHEN COMPLETED IT STOOD 57 FEET FIVE-STORY BUILDING.

>> JUST THE PRIDE THAT THE WORKERS TOOK, THAT THEY DID IT IN ONE PIECE OF STONE.

WE CAN'T JUST THINK ABOUT THE FINISHING.

WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT THE QUARRYING AND TO GET THESE MATCHING COLUMNS OUT OF QUARRY TO MAKE SOMEBODY LIKE JAY GOULD HAPPY WAS A CHALLENGE.

WITH HALL WE HAVE THE TREMENDOUS OBELISK.

ALL THOSE WORKS COME OUT OF WESTERLY.

>> WESTERLY GRANITE WAS KNOWN AS THE FINEST IN THE WORLD, ONE OF THE REASONS WAS BECAUSE OF ITS VERY FINE GRAIN THAT MADE IT IDEAL FOR CARVING.

>> WESTERLY HAD FOUR TYPES OF GRANITE.

THE FIRST TYPE THAT REALLY MADE US FAMOUS WAS THE BLUE GRANITE.

THAT IS THE TYPE OF GRANITE THAT IS BEST FOR STATUES.

THE STATUES GOT US INTO A LOT OF THE CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS.

ANOTHER KIND IS THE RED WESTERLY GRANITE.

THAT WAS QUARRIED IN THE NORTH END OF TOWN AS WAS THE DARK PINK GRANITE.

RED WESTERLY IS USED MORE FOR BUILDINGS.

THEN THERE WAS ALSO DARK PINK AND IN THE LATER YEARS THE LIGHT PINK.

THE LIGHT PINK WAS VERY HARD TO CUT.

IT DID HAVE A NICE FINE GRAIN AND A NICE COLOR, BUT IT WAS TRICKY TO CUT.

THE BLUE WAS MUCH MORE PREDICTABLE ON HOW IT WOULD BEHAVE.

>> WESTERLY GRANITE HAD SUCH A FINE GRAIN AND SUCH A FINE DENSITY TO IT THAT PEOPLE WERE PROUD TO HAVE A STATUE MADE OR A CEMETERY MARKER MADE OR A BUILDING MADE OF WESTERLY GRANITE BECAUSE IT WAS A CUT ABOVE THE OTHER GRANITES.

>> QUARRIES AND WORKERS WERE BOTH PLENTIFUL DURING THIS TIME.

PEOPLE WANTED GRANITE MONUMENTS TO COMMEMORATE CIVIL WAR HEROES, GRANITE HEADSTONES AND MAUSOLEUMS TO REMEMBER LOVED ONES AND GRANITE TO CONSTRUCT BUILDINGS.

WESTERLY GRANITE WAS USED FOR ALL OF THEM.

THIS WAS KNOWN AS THE HEYDAY OF THE GRANITE ERA AND WESTERLY WAS ATTRACTSING A LOT OF -- ATTRACTING A THE LOT OF ATTENTION.

>> HERE WITH ARE A LITTLE TOWN IN A LITTLE STATE, WHO HAS EVER HEARD OF WESTERLY, RHODE ISLAND?

WHEN YOU FIGURE BETWEEN -- I WOULD SAY 1880 AND 1930, THAT 50 HAD YEAR PERIOD, WESTERLY GRANITE WAS THE GOLD STANDARD OF CEMETERY MONUMENTS.

WE WERE VERY FORTUNATE.

>> SMITH GRANITE AND NEW ENGLAND GRANITE WORKS WERE THE TWO LARGEST OPERATING ON QUARRY HILL AT THIS TIME.

ORDER BOOKS FROM SMITH GRANITE COMPANY AND OTHERS PROVIDE A ROAD MAP OF THE WORKS FROM QUARRY TO MONUMENT.

>> I HAVE HERE ONE OF THE ORDER BOOKS OF THE SMITH GRANITE COMPANY THAT WE ARE VERY FORTUNATE TO HAVE.

WE REALLY LIKE THESE OLD ORDER BOOKS RATHER THAN THE ONES THAT CAME IN IN THE LATTER PART OF THE INDUSTRY'S LIFE.

BECAUSE THESE OLD ORDER BOOKS HAVE SO MUCH INFORMATION IN THEM.

THIS PARTICULAR ONE THAT I OPENED TO JUST BY CHANCE WAS FOR THE RICHARDSON MONUMENT IN RIVER BEND CEMETERY HERE IN WESTERLY.

WE CAN SEE WHEN IT WAS ORDERED.

WE KNOW THAT IT'S ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR, FIVE PIECES AND WE KNOW THE NAME OF THE PERSON THAT CUT EACH OF THE PIECES, AND WE KNOW THAT IT WAS SHIPPED IN NOVEMBER 25, 1893.

WEALTHY FAMILIES WANTED ONLY THE VERY BEST WHEN IT CAME TIME TO REMEMBER THEIR LOVED ONES.

THEY WOULD CONTACT SALESMEN FROM THE WESTERLY GRANITE COMPANY WHICH HAD OFFICES IN MAJOR CITIES, LIKE PHILADELPHIA AND NEW YORK, IN ORDER TO MEET THOSE CUSTOMERS' NEEDS, BUT IT WAS NOT JUST GRIEVING FAMILIES WHO CHOSE THE MONUMENTS.

SOME PEOPLE PLANNED THEIR OWN WHILE THEY WERE VERY MUCH ALIVE.

>> THIS IS THE LARGEST SINGLE LOT AT WOODLAWN.

IN 1882 HE BOUGHT 30,000 SQUARE FEET BECAUSE HE WAS DETERMINED TO BUILD WHAT AT THE TIME WAS THE MOST SPECTACULAR MAUSOLEUM IN NEW YORK CITY.

SO GOULD BUYS THIS PROPERTY KNOWING THAT HE IS GOING TO THE TIME TO DESIGN THIS TEMPLE FOR HIM.

>> GOULD, OF COURSE, WANTED ONLY THE BEST.

SO NOT ONLY DID HE COMMISSION THE MONUMENT MAKERS BUT HE ALSO CHOSE TO HAVE IT MADE OUT OF WESTERLY GRANITE >> THE MATZ LEEM WAS CON STRUCKED OUT OF WESTERLY GRANITE.

THE COMPANY THAT BUILT THIS HAD GREAT TIES TO WESTERLY.

SO THEY WERE SELLING THIS GRANITE IN THESE COLORS ALL OVER THE COUNTRY.

>> NEW ENGLAND GRANITE WORKS WAS KNOWN AS THE GIANT ON QUARRY HILL.

IT WAS AN UNUSUAL COMPANY BECAUSE IT EXCELLED AT BOTH ELABORATE MONUMENTAL WORK AND MAJOR BUILDING PROJECTS.

>> IT WAS THE NEW ENGLAND GRANITE WORK AND THE PRESIDENT OF THAT WAS JAMES PATTERSON.

HE WAS ONE OF THE MOVERS AND SHAKERS OF HIS TIME.

>> HE WAS A MAN OF MANY INTERESTS AND A CLOSE FRIEND OF PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

HIS GRANITE COMPANY WAS KNOWN FOR BUILDING ELABORATE GRANITE BUILDINGS AS WELL AS FINE MONUMENTS.

>> VATTERSON WAS VERY INVOLVED IN WOODLAWN.

HE WAS QUITE THE POLITICAL MOVER AND SHAKER AS WELL AS THE OPPORTUNIST.

HE WAS ONE OF THE FIRST WHO EMPLOYED REALLY FINE ARTISTS AND SCUP TORES TO WORK IN GRAN -- SCULPTORS TO WORK IN GRANITE.

ALL THOSE WORKS COME OUT OF WESTERLY AND THE NEW ENGLAND GRANITE COMPANY.

>> NEW ENGLAND GRANITE WORKS ORDER BOOKS SHOWED THE DIVERSITY OF THE WORK PRODUCED BY THE COMPANY.

A FEW OF THE PROMINNT WORKS ARE THE STATE CAPITOL BUILDING IN HARTFORD, KEBT, AND THE TRAVELERS -- CONNECTICUT, AND THE TRAVELERS INSURANCE BUILDING.

VATTERSON LEFT HIS MARK IN WESTERLY.

>> THE FORMER INDUSTRIAL TRUST BUILDING IN DOWNTOWN WESTERLY IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF THE CRAFTSMANSHIP AND ARTISTRY THAT WAS PRODUCED BY JAMES VATTERSON.

IT HAS GREAT EXAMPLES OF EMBEDDED COLUMNS WITH CORINTHIAN LINES.

THIS IS A WONDERFUL EXAMPLE OF THE CRAFTSMANSHIP AND ARTISTRY THAT EXISTED IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY WITHIN THE GRANITE INDUSTRY.

>> THE WESTERLY LIBRARY IS OUR CIVIL WAR MONUMENT HERE IN WESTERLY.

IT'S GOT SOME BEAUTIFUL DETAIL WORK ON THE ENTRANCE.

>> MECHANIZATION CHANGED THE GRANITE INDUSTRY IN THE LATE 19TH CENTURY.

ELECTRICITY WAS READILY AVAILABLE AND WHAT USED TO BE DONE BY MAN AND SIMPLE MACHINE WAS CHANGED FOREVER BY TECHNOLOGY.

NEW COMPANIES, LIKE SULLIVAN AND THE JOSEPH CODURI COMPANY, OPENED DURING THIS TIME.

>> WHAT SETS WESTERLY APART FROM OTHER GRAN ITS IS ITS STRENGTH -- GRANITES IS ITS STRENGTH.

IT'S A SMOOTH GRANITE BECAUSE IT'S VERY FINE GRAIN.

WESTERLY HOLDS UP WELL IN THAT MANNER.

THE OTHER THING THAT'S IMPORTANT ABOUT IT IS THE TECHNOLOGY OF THE COMPANIES THAT WERE UP THERE.

WESTERLY AND NEW ENGLAND GRANITE HAD PHENOMENAL CRAFTSMEN BUT ALSO THE DEVELOPMENT IN TECHNOLOGY HOW YOU COULD MAKE THESE CURVES.

ONE OF THE WAYS WE CAN ALWAYS TELL WESTERLY IS THE RAISED LETTERING.

IT'S RAISED LETTERING WITH A CURVE TO IT.

FOR EVERYONE ELSE IT'S BLOCK LETTERS.

THEY ARE DOING ROUNDED LETTERS AND THAT'S WHAT REALLY SEPARATES WESTERLY FROM A LOT OF THE OTHER PRODUCTS.

ITS COLOR, ITS STRENGTH OF STONE, BUT IT'S THE TECHNICAL ABILITY, THE CARVERS THAT WERE LIVING THERE TO GIVE YOU A PRODUCT THAT NOBODY HAD EVER SEEN.

>> MONUMENTS WERE USUALLY PRODUCED IN PIECES, WHICH WERE THEN NUMBERED SO THEY COULD BE AACCEPT BLED AT THEIR -- ASSEMBLED AT THEIR FINAL LOCATION.

DEPENDING ON THE ERA, A DIFFERENT MODE OF TRANSPORTATION WAS UTILIZED TO TRANSPORT THESE FINISHED PIECES.

>> IT AMAZES ME THAT FROM THE 1880'S WHEN TRANSPORTATION AND COMMUNICATION WERE SO LIMITED COMPARED TO WHAT WE ARE USED TO NOW, THAT WESTERLY WAS SENDING MONUMENTS AND MAUSOLEUMS DOWN TO ATLANTA, GEORGIA.

THEY WOULD SHIP EITHER BY BARGE OR RAIL IN THOSE DAYS.

OX CARTS WERE USED TO TAKE THE STONES DOWN TO THE RAILROAD STATION, AND IN WESTERLY THE GRANITE QUARRIES ARE ON THE TOP OF THE HILL.

SO THEY WOULD HITCH UP ONE PAIR OF OXEN IN FRONT OF THE CART TO STEER THE CART AND MAYBE 12 OR 13 PAIR BEHIND THE CART TO HOLD IT BACK FROM RUNNING AWAY, GOING DOWNHILL.

AND THEN WHEN THEY GET TO THE FOOT OF THE HILL, THEY'D HAVE TO REPOSITION THE OXEN SO THEY HAD PULLERS TO TAKE IT OVER TO THE RAILROAD STATION.

>> WESTERLY'S WATERWAYS WERE BUSY DURING THE GRANITE ERA AS WELL, AND BARGES WERE USED IN THE EARLY DAYS.

>> ONE OF THE PRACTICAL THINGS THAT WESTERLY GRANITE WAS USED FOR IS COBBLESTONE.

PROVIDENCE, BOSTON, NEW YORK, NEW BEDFORD, FALL RIVER, ALL PURCHASED TONS AND TONS AND TONS OF COBBLESTONE AND THEY'D BE LOADED INTO A BARGE AND THEY WOULD BE SHIPPED TO THE VARIOUS PLACES.

>> AS TRANSPORTATION EVOLVED, SULLIVAN GRANITE AND OTHER COMPANIES TURNED TO RAIL POWER TO GET THE LARGE PIECES OF STONE THAT WERE FREED FROM THE QUARRY HOLES TO THE SHEDS AND CARVERS IN WESTERLY AND UP AND DOWN THE EAST COAST.

>> MY GRANDFATHER HAD A RAIL BED PUT IN BECAUSE THEY HAD WELL OVER A MILE TO GO FROM THE QUARRY TO THE ACTUAL RAILROAD ITSELF.

SO BY PUTTING IN A LINE, THEY COULD PUT IT ON THAT AND GET IT TO THE MAIN RAILROAD.

>> THE END OF THE CIVIL WAR BROUGHT WITH IT A DESIRE TO COMMEMORATE THOSE WHO FOUGHT FOR FREEDOM.

EACH STATE WANTED TO COMMEMORATE THEIR PLACE IN HISTORY AND CHOSE TO DO IT WITH MONUMENTS AND STATUES.

THIS BREATHTAKING MONUMENT KNOWN AS THE ANTIETAM SOLDIER OR THE PRIVATE SOLDIER WEIGHS 250 TONS.

HE IS OVER 21.5 FEET TALL, IS IMPECCABLY DRESSED FOR THE TIME PERIOD AND IS MADE UP OF 27 PIECES.

HE STANDS IN SHARPSBURG, MARYLAND, TODAY BUT IT'S NOT JUST HIS SIZE THAT MATTERS BUT ALSO HIS JOURNEY SOUTH THAT ADDS TO THE STORY.

>> HE WAS FIRST SET UP HERE FOR INSPECTION.

WE HAVE SOME PICTURES OF PEOPLE COMING TO LOOK AT IT AND PICTURES OF THE SCULPTOR LOOKING OVER THE SHOULDER OF THE MONUMENT.

HIS FINAL DESTINATION WAS ANTIETAM CEMETERY.

SOMEHOW IN THE TRANSFER OF THE MONUMENT FROM ONE TYPE OF BOAT TO ANOTHER TYPE OF BOAT, THE TOP HALF ENDED UP IN THE POTOMAC RIVER AND SPENT THE WINTER THERE UNTIL THE WEATHER COULD CLEAR ENOUGH SO THAT THEY COULD GET HIM OUT.

HE IS IN TWO PIECES, THE BOTTOM UP TO HIS WAIST AND WAIST UP.

SO THEY EVENTUALLY GOT HIM BACK TOGETHER.

BUT HE HAD QUITE AN ADVENTURESOME JOURNEY TO ANTIETAM BATTLEGROUND.

>> GETTYSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, IT IS HERE WHERE THE TURNING POINT OF THE CIVIL WAR TOOK PLACE.

TODAY OVER 70 OF THE 1,300 CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS THAT ARE FOUND AT GETTYSBURG NATIONAL MILITARY PARK ARE FROM WESTERLY GRANITE.

HOWEVER, GRANITE WAS NOT THE FIRST CHOICE OF MATERIAL FOR MANY OF THE ORIGINAL MONUMENTS AT THE PARK.

>> WHEN THE PARK WAS INITIALLY ESTABLISHED BY THE MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION, THEY HAD INITIALLY -- THERE WAS MARBLE WAS THE PRIMARY MONUMENT MATERIAL.

THERE WAS SOME SANDSTONE THAT WAS USED IN A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME, THEY FOUND THIS WAS IN THE EARLY 1880'S, THEY FOUND DETERIORATION HAPPENING.

THE MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION AT THAT POINT DECIDED THEY WOULD PUT A MORATORIUM AND THAT EVERYTHING THAT WAS GOING TO BE BUILT AT GETTYSBURG MEMORIALWISE WAS GOING TO BE DONE WITH GRANITE.

>> IT WAS THE QUALITY OF THE GRANITE, THE AVAILABILITY OF THE STONE, AND THE CRAFTSMEN THAT MADE WESTERLY THE PLACE TO HAVE MONUMENTS MADE.

>> WESTERLY QUARRIES WERE IN THE HEYDAY OF THEIR OPERATION AT THE TIME THAT THIS PARK WAS BEING ESTABLISHED BY THE VETERANS AND THAT THE QUARRIES HAD NOT BEEN OPENED OR IT WASN'T AS PREVALENT IN USE, AND THEREFORE WESTERLY IS WHAT WE SEE HERE.

>> THE CARVINGS WE HAVE HERE I THINK ARE SOME OF THE NICEST IN THE COUNTRY.

WHAT I SEE WITH WESTERLY IS A VERY DISTINCTIVE IN TERMS OF THE LEVEL OF DETAIL.

THEY'RE BASICALLY STONE SCULPTURE AND THEY CAME OFF A MODEL AND THE STONE CARVER CARVED A STONE, BUT THE AMOUNT OF DETAIL WHERE THEY TAKE IT TO FEATHER EDGES IS JUST AMAZING.

>> THE FINE GRAIN OF WESTERLY GRANITE MADE IT IDEAL FOR CUTTING AND CARVING AND PERFECT FOR CREATING ORNATE MONUMENTS AND STATUES.

>> ONE OF THE ONES THAT IS VERY DRAMATIC IS THE TITANIC MONUMENT IN WASHINGTON, D.C.

THE NAME OF IT IS CALLED SACRIFICE, AND IT'S DONE BY A GROUP OF WOMEN TO HONOR THE SACRIFICE OF THE MEN WHO WENT DOWN WITH THE SHIP SO THAT THE WOMEN AND THE CHILDREN COULD BE SAVED.

>> BATTLEFIELD MONUMENTS CAN BE FOUND IN GETTYSBURG AND CHATTANOOGA, ALL MADE OF WESTERLY GRANITE.

DESPITE THE STRENGTH OF THE STONE, MANY OF THESE WONDROUS WORKS ARE IN NEED OF REPAIR, AND THOSE WITH THE KNOWLEDGE AND SKILL ARE NO LONGER HERE.

>> I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO AS AMERICANS IS MAKE SURE THAT THIS ISN'T A LOST ART.

FOR US TO RESTORE AND PROTECT THESE THINGS, WE NEED PEOPLE WHO UNDERSTAND THE ART FORM, WHO CAN REPLICATE PIECES THAT HAVE WORN AWAY.

IT'S ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL AT THIS TIME WHEN THERE ARE SO FEW PEOPLE LEFT WHO KNOW HOW TO DO THIS, THAT WE EDUCATE SOME PEOPLE SO THAT WE CAN CARRY THIS TRADITION ON.

>> AND IF THE CRAFTSMANSHIP AND MATERIALS CAN BE FOUND, IT COMES WITH A PRICE.

>> I THINK THE CHALLENGE IS AFFORDABLE RESTORATION.

WE HAVE LOTS OF FAMILIES THAT COME BACK TO WOODLAWN WHO WOULD LOVE TO RESTORE THIS.

WHEN THEY LEARN THE PRICE, IT'S BECAUSE THERE ARE SO FEW PEOPLE OUT THERE AND THEY'RE IN SUCH DEMAND, THEY CAN COMMAND A GOOD PRICE BUT ALSO JUST TO EVEN GET ON THEIR SCHEDULE.

IF WE HAD MORE PEOPLE WHO COULD DO THIS WORK, WE WOULD SEE A WHOLE LOT MORE PRESERVATION IN AMERICA.

>> I CAME TO GETTYSBURG FOUR YEARS AGO AS THE MONUMENT SUPERVISOR.

IT BECAME VERY APPARENT TO ME THAT THERE WERE STONE REPAIRS TO BE MADE AND THAT WE WERE GOING TO HAVE TO REPLACE MATERIALS WITH IN KIND MATERIALS.

SO FINDING WESTERLY BECAME SORT OF A NUMBER ONE PRIORITY OF MANY NUMBER ONE PRIORITIES BEFORE OUR 150TH ANNIVERSARY.

>> REPAIRS TO CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS IN GETTYSBURG NATIONAL MILITARY PARK IN PENNSYLVANIA ARE ALSO PROVING TO BE A CHALLENGE.

>> A LOT OF MASSACHUSETTS VOLUNTEERS -- IT WAS DAMAGED IN 2006, A CASE OF VANDALISM.

SOMEONE PULLED IT FROM ITS PEDESTAL.

IT WAS BROKEN IN HALF.

WE HAD TO FIND A FAIRLY LARGE SIZE BLOCK OF WESTERLY.

>> MATCHING THE GRANITE THAT'S NEEDED TO MAKE THE REPAIRS CAN BE A DIFFICULT TASK, LIKE PUTTING TOGETHER PIECES OF A PUZZLE.

>> I WAS ABLE TO TALK WITH BOB, MR. COMOLLI AND DISCUSS WHAT OPTIONS THERE WERE FOR GETTYSBURG TO PURCHASE SOME OF THIS GRANITE TO MAKE THIS MAJOR REPAIR, BECAUSE IT WAS VERY SYMBOLIC.

>> IT WON'T BE ANY EASIER FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS.

>> I THINK FOR THE NEXT GENERATION THEY'RE GOING TO FACE THE SAME CHALEPPINGS BECAUSE IT'S STILL GOING TO BE -- CHALLENGES BECAUSE IT'S STILL GOING TO BE WESTERLY, STILL GOING TO BE GRANITE.

I THINK THEY'LL FACE A LOT OF THE SAME ISSUES THAT WE HAVE WITH CLEANING, WITH REPAIRS.

THE TECHNOLOGY ISN'T CHANGING FOR STONE CARVING.

>> MAJOR REPAIRS HAVE RECENTLY BEEN MADE TO SOME OF THE LARGER MONUMENTS AND OTHERS ARE BEING REPAIRED BEFORE WINTER SETS IN.

>> THE LINCOLN MONUMENT WAS SHOWING SEVERE SIGNS OF DISPLACEMENT.

DEFINITELY HAD SOME STONE ON STONE CONTACT, WHICH LED TO SOME SPALLING.

IT'S BASICALLY SLIDING APART.

IT BASICALLY TOOK THE WHOLE THING APART AND THEY'RE PUTTING THE WHOLE THING BACK TOGETHER.

>> CARVERS ARE HIGHLY SKILLED STONE CUTTERS.

THEY ARE ARTISTS WHO WORK IN STONE.

JOSEPH CARVED CLOSE TO 60 MONUMENTS INCLUDING AN INTRICATE ROSE, SO BEAUTIFUL THAT IT WAS DISPLAYED IN HIS HOME AND THEN MOUPTED ON HIS HEADSTONE WHEN HE DIED.

COLUMBUS TOGETHER WITH HIS BROTHER MADE ANGELS COME TO LIFE.

MASTER CARVER RICHARD COMOLLI IS THE LAST OF THE GREAT CARVERS OF THE GRANITE ERA.

HE STILL GOES TO WORK AT HIS SHOP EACH DAY.

HE MOVES A LITTLE SLOWER NOW, BUT SAYS HE WILL CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE STONE IN HONOR OF HIS FATHER AND TO KEEP HIS CRAFT ALIVE.

>> I JUST HOPE AS I WENT BY THIS WAY, I HAD A FEW FRIENDS, OTHER THAN THAT IF I HAD TO DO IT OVER AGAIN, I WOULD DO THE SAME THING I DID.

I HAVE NO REGRETS.

LIFE HAS BEEN GOOD.

>> HE IS A MAN WHO LOVES GRANITE.

IT'S HIS LIVELIHOOD.

YOU KNOW THAT THIS IS WHAT HE WAS DESTINED TO DO, TO BE THIS ARTISAN WHO HAS DONE AMAZINGLY BEAUTIFUL WORK.

>> THE TIDE WAS STARTING TO TURP IN THE LATE 1930'S AND 1940'S.

CIVIL WAR MONUMENTS WERE NO LONGER BEING ORDERED MUCH THE FINANCIAL BURDENS OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION AND WORLD WAR II CHANGED EVERYTHING.

THE GRANITE INDUSTRY IN WESTERLY WAS FADING.

>> WE WOULD GO FROM THESE SMALL QUARRIES INTO MASSIVE QUARRIES IN VERMONT BECAUSE THEY CAN CUT MASSIVE QUANTITIES OF STONE AT ONE TIME AND TRANSPORT IT OUT OF VERMONT.

SO THAT'S REALLY WHAT IS KIND OF THE DOWNFALL OF WESTERLY.

>> A FEW QUARRIES DID SURVIVE LONG ENOUGH TO MEET SOME OF THE NEW DEMAND AFTER THE WAR.

BUT THE ONCE THRIVING INDUSTRY WAS GONE.

>> I THINK THAT IT ENDED FOR SEVERAL REASONS.

FIRST OF ALL, THERE'S ONLY SO MANY CIVIL WAR BATTLEFIELDS THAT CAN HOLD MONUMENTS.

THE DEPRESSION CAME ALONG.

PEOPLE COULD NOT AFFORD TO SPEND THE AMOUNT OF MONEY ON INDIVIDUAL MONUMENTS AND TOMBSTONES AND MAAS LEEMS THAT THEY HAD BEEN -- MAUSOLEUMS THAT THEY HAD BEEN SPENDING.

THE GILDED AGE ENDED.

WORLD WAR II CAME ALONG SO THE YOUNG MEN THAT HAD THAT SKILL TO WORK IN THE QUARRIES LEFT TO JOIN THE WAR EFFORT, AND IT WAS GONE.

>> THE STONE OF COURSE STILL STANDS AS A TESTAMENT TO THE WORKERS AND TALENTED CRAFTSMEN WHO BUILT THESE MONUMENTS AND BUILDINGS.

IT CAN BE FOUND ALL ACROSS THE UNITED STATES AND HERE IN THE TOWN OF WESTERLY, RHODE ISLAND, A COMMUNITY CARVED FROM STONE.