Pioneer Lime Kiln

Every stone building needs mortar, and mortar needs lime — so in 1875 the Van Wagoner brothers built this kiln to make it. Burning lime was brutal work: they blasted rock from the quarry, stacked twenty-five tons of it in the kiln, and kept it at white heat through three days and nights of twelve-hour shifts to cook out eight tons of lime, then let it cool two more days. Much of it went to Park City's Ontario Mine at fifty cents a bushel. The kiln burned its last in 1922.

What the plaque says

In 1875 William Van Wagoner and his brother John Sr., built this lime kiln. They operated it for many years. Lime rock was quarried by blasting it into chunks. Twenty-five tons of rock produced 8 tons of lime. Three days and three nights of 12-hour shifts, steadily burning at top-heat were required to burn out the lime. It cooled 48 hours before being removed. Lime was used in mortar, plaster and for white washing. Much of the lime was sold to the Ontario Mining Co. of Park City at 50¢ a bushel delivered. The kiln was abandoned in 1922.

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Midway — 0.6 mi
  A Swiss-inspired village with a geothermal crater you can snorkel in
• Homestead Crater — 1.1 mi
  A hidden geothermal spring inside a 55-foot limestone dome
• Heber Valley Railroad — 2.7 mi
  A vintage steam train ride through a stunning mountain valley
• Jordanelle State Park — 6.2 mi
  A sapphire reservoir nestled between the Wasatch and Uinta mountains

More markers nearby

• Midway Social Hall — 0.5 mi
• Midway Fort — 0.6 mi
• Midway Town Hall — 0.6 mi
• Pioneer Cemetery — 1.5 mi