Dorset Marble Quarry

The first marble quarry in the US. Beautiful quarry filled with fresh, clean water. Lots of cliffs to jump from. Very popular and well-known local swimming place. There are a few, very interesting sculptures carved into the marble. See how many you can find. And the story behind this epic swimming hole is pretty, well, epic... First opened in 1785 as America’s first marble quarry, it suppled marble to the New York Public Library, Brown University’s library, several amazing mansions in NYC, and Memorial Continental Hall of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Washington, D.C. All of which you can visit today and see the Dorset marble that adorns these buildings.  But, then the quarry was abandoned. Today, owner Dick McDonough has continued the amazing story of this quarry… When he first bought the property where the quarry was, it was very dangerous and overgrown. But, he loved the history of the area and wanted to bring the quarry back to the community. So, along with his wife, and at their own personal financial expense, the McDonoughs set about the monumental task of clearing out the massive quarry, and created a picnic area and parking lot.  Today the quarry is a much-loved community resource, for lounging, relaxation and of course, swimming. Kirsten McDonough says: “…It’s just so beautiful, that it is kind of meant to be shared and people feel like they’re kind of entitled to be there because they’ve been swimming there for so long.”