The Quarry

According to many sources on the web (all apparently relying on the same source,) Rufus Flynt openned the quarry in 1809 to provide stone for the building of the Springfield Armory. But at least 2 state that the Federal government did the quarrying from that year, and Rufus was involved later. Whether Rufus had anything to do with the earlier quarrying is unknown.

From: MHC RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY REPORT: "The granite quarry was opened in 1809 by agents of the Springfield Armory, who quarried foundation stone for the Armory from it. The quarry was not worked again until about 1825 when Rufus Flynt quarried stone trim for the Chicopee Bank at Springfield. The stone was transported to the city by teams, and because of this lack of adequate transportation, the quarry business seems to have languished for several decades after".

From: Manufacturer and Builder article: "The first stone taken from it was quarried by the United States government for the stone of which the Springfield Armory buildings are built. In 1824, the quarry was opened and worked on a small scale by Rufus Flynt." (The full text of the article is in this section under Building of America )

Most of the existing roads from the quarry to Springfield had rather steep inclines en route for both the government & Rufus Flynt, at least until 1839 when the Boston & Albany RR station was openned in Palmer. This occurance, probably had as much imputus to complete the Upper Palmer Road (and bridge over the Quaboag) all the way to Palmer, as did the building of the State Alms House. (Notice how gradual the grade is on the existing road and all down hill - great for teams hauling heavy stone.)

Thus, this section deals with the pre-1840 transportation challenges to both the government & Flynts to get their stone to the Springfield area.

Each of the likely existing (at that time) routes is discussed, as well as one hypothetical route. The hypothesis is that Flynt (and/or the government) used some existing roads, but also carved out a short cut that reduced the ascents & descents required. To avoid climbing Hovey Rd and descending BaldPeak road, Flynt (or the government) carved a short cut between elevations 550-600 feet.

Updated 20090806