Colorado Experience

(MUSIC PLAYING) - THE MARBLE IN MARBLE, COLORADO IS SOME OF THE WHITEST, PUREST MARBLE IN THE WORLD.

- PEOPLE SAW THAT PURE WHITE MARBLE THAT SPAWNED A BOOM.

AND EVERYBODY BEGAN TO WANT IT.

- THE EQUIPMENT THAT WAS USED BACK IN THE OLD DAYS, IT'S HARD FOR ME TO EVEN CONCEIVE.

- SO, IF YOU CAN IMAGINE 500 GREEK AND ITALIAN WORKERS CREATING ALL THE MARBLE FOR THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL.

- I'M SO AMAZED THAT SO MANY PEOPLE DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL CAME FROM THIS LITTLE TINY TOWN.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - THE FACT THAT THE QUARRY HAS REOPENED, IT'S BRINGING A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE, A LOT OF ARTISTS.

- IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL TO JUST BE ALONE WITH THE ROCK AND LET IT TELL ME WHERE I SHOULD GO WITH THE TOOLS.

IT'S JUST WONDERFUL.

- MARBLE IS MAGICAL.

I HATE TO SOUND CLICHE, BUT IT IS.

IT'S A VERY SPECIAL PLACE.

- I DO BELIEVE THAT ANYONE THAT COMES HERE, THEY FALL IN LOVE WITH THE STONE AND THE PLACE.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - WHEN I TOUCHED MY FIRST PIECE OF MARBLE, I FELT LIKE I WAS FALLING BACKWARDS INTO A BLACK HOLE.

ALL OF A SUDDEN, EVERYTHING THAT I HAD LEARNED, LIKE WELDING AND ELECTRICITY AND PLUMBING, IT ALL CAME INTO PLAY.

AND I JUST FELT LIKE THIS IS FOR ME.

WHEN I'M CARVING, IT'S KIND OF LIKE YOU JUST GO AWAY.

AND GET ABSORBED INTO THE STONE.

MY NAME IS GREGORY TONOZZI.

I LIVE IN THE TOWN OF MARBLE AND I'M A MARBLE CARVER.

I'VE BEEN CARVING MARBLE FOR OVER 50 YEARS.

I BOUGHT THIS LAND IN 1984, I THINK.

BECAUSE THE QUARRY HADN'T REOPENED YET.

AND I DIDN'T THINK THE QUARRY WOULD OPEN AND SO ALL THIS MARBLE WAS DUMPED ALONG THE OLD RAILROAD BED DOWN HERE.

I BOUGHT THE LAND TO HAVE ACCESS TO MARBLE.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - THIS IS THE CEREMONY THAT A SCULPTOR GOES THROUGH GETTING READY FOR CARVING STONE.

AND THIS IS MY RESPIRATOR.

SO ONCE YOU CHOOSE THE STONE, IT'S COLLABORATION BETWEEN YOU AND THAT STONE.

THERE'S NOTHING ELSE THAT EXISTS.

YOU DREAM ABOUT IT.

YOU GO TO BED THINKING ABOUT IT.

YOU GET UP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, MAYBE SKETCH A LITTLE SOMETHING.

IT'S ALL ENCOMPASSING.

YOU ASK EVERYBODY, HOW DID YOU GET HERE?

AND I THINK A LOT OF THEIR ANSWERS ARE ALL THE SAME.

MARBLE JUST FILLS YOUR SOUL.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - MARBLE, COLORADO IS ACTUALLY NAMED AFTER A ROCK CALLED MARBLE.

PEOPLE HAVE CARVED MARBLE FOR MILLENNIA.

AND COLORADO HAS ONE OF THE MOST SPECIAL MARBLE PLACES ON EARTH.

- THE TOWN OF MARBLE IS LOCATED ON THE WESTERN SLOPE.

WE'RE ABOUT 30 MILES SOUTH OF CARBONDALE.

WE'RE ON THE WEST ELK SCENIC BYWAY OFF OF 133.

- IN THE TOWN OF MARBLE, IT'S APPROXIMATELY 134 PEOPLE.

- WE HAVE THE MARBLE CAMPGROUND.

WE HAVE THE MARBLE GALLERY, SLOW GROOVIN' BARBECUE, THE BIGGEST DEAL IN TOWN.

WE HAVE THE MUSEUM, K-8 CHARTER SCHOOL, BEAVER LAKE LODGE, WHICH IS ACROSS TOWN.

AND SO-- WE'VE GOT A FEW LITTLE BUSINESSES HERE.

- WE DON'T HAVE ANY BIG GROCERY STORES OR GAS STATIONS.

A LOT OF MOM-AND-POP STYLE BUSINESSES.

THERE'S, OF COURSE, THE QUARRY.

[OVERLAP CHATTER] - YOU KNOW, IT BRINGS A LOT OF TOURISM.

A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE INTERESTED IN MARBLE AND THE HISTORIC ASPECTS OF WHAT'S HAPPENED IN MARBLE, COLORADO.

AND WHERE THE MARBLE'S GONE ON TO AND WHAT IT'S A PART OF.

- THE TWO MEN WHO FIRST FOUND THE MARBLE WERE SYLVESTER RICHARDSON, WHO WAS PART OF THE PARSONS GEOLOGICAL SURVEY IN 1873.

AND THEN IN 1874, A MAN NAMED GEORGE YULE CAME IN HERE AND FOUND MARBLE IN A DIFFERENT SPOT.

- THEY WERE WALKING THROUGH UP IN THE MOUNTAINS HERE, AND THERE WAS JUST THIS BIG GRAY CLIFF, BROKE A PIECE OFF, AND WOW, WHITE MARBLE.

- THE MARBLE IN MARBLE, COLORADO IS SOME OF THE WHITEST, PUREST MARBLE IN THE WORLD.

IT'S ABUNDANT, IT'S EVERYWHERE AROUND HERE.

IT'S REALLY COOL TO HAVE IT BE SO PREVALENT AS WELL AS FUNCTIONAL.

- MANY STATES HAVE DIFFERENT STATE ANIMALS, STATE ROCKS, STATE BIRDS, STATE GEMSTONES.

AND COLORADO HAS A STATE ROCK AND IT'S THE YULE MARBLE.

MARBLE TRANSFORMS FROM A ROCK KNOWN AS LIMESTONE.

AND THAT HAPPENS WHEN ROCKS LIKE THIS GET HEATED UNDERGROUND BY UNDERGROUND LAVA.

AND THE CRYSTALS REORGANIZE OVER TIME AND BECOME MORE AND MORE INTERLOCKING AND SOMETIMES GROW.

THE ROCK CAN ACTUALLY CHANGE COLOR GOING FROM A DARK GRAY LIKE THIS TO WHITE LIKE THIS.

ONE OF THE STRANGE THINGS ABOUT THIS MARBLE IS THAT PEOPLE ARE FASCINATED BY IT.

I'M FASCINATED BY IT AS A GEOLOGIST BECAUSE IT'S A BEAUTIFUL STONE.

SOME OF THEM LIKE THEM BECAUSE THEY'RE ANCIENT.

- UTES OCCUPIED THIS AREA LONG BEFORE THE WHITE PEOPLE DID.

AND THEY DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHITE MARBLE.

THEY DIDN'T USE IT FOR ANYTHING.

THIS WAS THEIR SUMMER AREA, HUNTING, FISHING.

THEY HAD A VERY IMPORTANT HISTORY IN THIS AREA JUST AS THE FIRST OCCUPANTS.

AND THEY GOT VERY DISPLACED.

THEY WERE MOVED OFF OF, YOU KNOW, JUST OUT, JUST RUN OUT, JUST LIKE ALL OVER THE NATION.

PRETTY MUCH FIGURED THEY WERE AT HOME UNTIL THE QUARRY PEOPLE MOVED IN.

- IN THE 1860S, THIS WAS THE DECADE OF PLACER MINERS.

AND THEN IN 1874, THE HAYDEN SURVEY CAME IN.

- ORIGINALLY, AS THEY CAME THROUGH, THEY WERE LOOKING WHERE THEY COULD ACTUALLY START MINING OR TAPPING INTO THE RIVERS FOR GOLD AND SILVER.

I DON'T THINK MARBLE WAS EVEN ON THEIR MIND.

IN 1893, JOHN C. OSGOOD, WHO ALSO WAS THE HEAD OF THE DENVER AND RIO GRANDE RAILROAD, BROUGHT SAMPLES TO THE WORLD COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION IN 1893.

AND WHEN PEOPLE SAW THAT PURE WHITE MARBLE, THAT SPAWNED A BOOM, AND EVERYBODY BEGAN TO WANT IT.

- WE HAD SEVERAL PEOPLE WHO WANTED TO DO SOMETHING WITH IT, BUT WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WHEN YOU'RE UP AT CLOSE TO 10,000 FEET WITH NO ROADS?

AND THIS HUGE CLIFF FULL OF MARBLE.

FROM THERE THEY DEVELOPED A ROAD.

- THEY SET UP FIVE QUARRY OPENINGS BY HARD WORK.

THERE WAS NO MACHINERY THAT WE HAVE TODAY TO DO THAT.

WHAT THEY DID IT WITH WAS SHOVEL AND PICK, ETC.

IT TOOK ABOUT A DECADE FOR THEM TO DO THAT.

THE TOWN WAS SET UP IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE QUARRIES BECAUSE TO MINE MARBLE YOU HAD TO HAVE SKILLED WORKERS.

AND THE SKILLED WORKERS CAME FROM GREECE AND ITALY.

SO DOWN BELOW IN A FLAT AREA ALONG THE BANKS OF THE CRYSTAL RIVER, THAT'S WHERE ALL THE HOUSES WERE SET UP, AND INITIALLY THEY WERE EMPLOYEE HOUSING.

- MOST OF THE PEOPLE THAT LIVED HERE HAD SOMEONE INVOLVED IN THE QUARRY.

BUT THERE WAS WELL OVER 2,000 PEOPLE IN TOWN AT ONE TIME.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - THE INITIAL PROCESS OF MINING MARBLE WAS WITH DYNAMITE.

VERY WASTEFUL PROCESS.

BLEW UP ROCK AND A LOT OF IT CRUMBLED OBVIOUSLY FROM THE BLAST AND THEN IT EXPOSED STUFF THAT WAS GOOD.

A LITTLE LATER ON THEY USED WHAT WAS CALLED PLUG AND FEATHERS.

THEY WOULD DRILL INTO THE MARBLE WITH A DRILL AND THEN PUT WATER IN THE DRILL HOLE.

AND WHEN THE WATER FROZE IT BROKE OFF THE MARBLE AND CRACKED IT.

AND THAT'S HOW THEY GOT IT OUT.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - MY NAME IS KIMBERLY PERRIN.

I AM THE DIRECTOR OF THE MARBLE HISTORICAL SOCIETY.

THIS SHOWS THE OLD WORKINGS INSIDE FROM 1905 TO WHEN THEY CLOSED IT.

AND YOU CAN SEE HOW SMALL THESE MEN WERE IN THERE AND THEN THE OLD EQUIPMENT THAT THEY USED TO USE.

THE EQUIPMENT THAT WAS USED BACK IN THE OLD DAYS IS HARD FOR ME TO EVEN CONCEIVE.

BUT THEY DID HAVE SAWS, AND YOU CAN CUT THIS WITH A SAW, BUT IT'S PRETTY SLOW WHEN YOU'RE DOING A BIG BLOCK.

- FROM THE LATE 1890S UNTIL, SAY, ABOUT 1941, IT WAS ALL DONE WITH CRANES.

EVERYTHING WAS HOISTED OUT THE OPENINGS OF THE QUARRY.

WHICH SOMETIMES WAS ABOUT 200 FEET OR MORE ABOVE YOU.

TO GET THE MARBLE DOWN FROM THE QUARRY.

IT'S ABOUT A FOUR MILE ROAD AND IT'S DIRT STILL.

WHEN THEY FIRST STARTED BRINGING MARBLE DOWN FROM THE QUARRY, THEY USED LARGE MULES HAULING A FLATBED WITH A ROCK THAT PROBABLY WEIGHED ABOUT 20,000 POUNDS ON IT.

- LATER ON, THEY USED A 110 HORSEPOWER STEAM TRACTOR.

WHICH WOULD PULL FOUR WAGONS WITH 20 TONS ON EACH ONE OF THE WAGONS.

AND THAT WAS INEFFICIENT.

SO WHEN SHANNON MEEK, THE FATHER OF THE TOWN, CAME TO TOWN, HE BUILT AN ELECTRIC TRAM THAT RAN FROM THE QUARRIES DOWN TO THE FINISHING MILL, THE LARGEST FINISHING MILL IN THE WORLD.

- TO FINISH MONUMENTS, THEY ALL HAVE TO BE SMOOTH AND SHAPED AND WOULD GO FROM A ROUGH CUT.

TO A FINER CUT IF IT NEEDED TO BE CURVED OR THE EDGES NEEDED TO BE VERY SMOOTH, AND THEN IT'D GO INTO POLISHING.

IT'S SEVERAL STEPS TO GET A REALLY BEAUTIFUL FINISH.

- YOU'RE WALKING RIGHT NOW THROUGH THE PLACE WHERE THE MARBLE FINISHING MILL USED TO EXIST, AND THIS MILL COST $3 MILLION IN THE EARLY 1900S WHEN IT WAS BUILT.

WHICH WOULD BE, YOU KNOW, A LOT MORE MONEY BY TODAY'S STANDARDS.

1742 FEET LONG, A THIRD OF A MILE, AND IF YOU LOOK AT BOTH SIDES, IT'S ONLY ABOUT 50 FEET WIDE.

SO IF YOU CAN IMAGINE 500 GREEK AND ITALIAN WORKERS WORKING IN THAT MARBLE MILL FROM 1914 TO 1916.

CREATING ALL THE MARBLE FOR THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL.

ONE OF THE GREAT MARBLE CONTRIBUTIONS OF ALL TIME.

- ALL OF THESE LINCOLN MEMORIAL COLUMNS WERE FABRICATED HERE AND THEY ARE LITERALLY STACKED AND JUST SLIGHTLY FLUTED.

AND THEY'RE ABOUT FOUR FEET HIGH EACH.

12 IN EACH COLUMN THAT HAD TO BE INDIVIDUALLY AND PRECISELY MADE.

IT TOOK 600 RAIL CARS, 40 TRIPS EACH, TO GET THIS MARBLE BACK TO DC.

SO ANYBODY THAT WANTED THIS WHITE MARBLE, IT WAS A CONSIDERABLE EFFORT.

I'M SO AMAZED THAT SO MANY PEOPLE DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL CAME FROM THIS LITTLE TINY TOWN.

- THE MARBLE HERE IS USED IN OVER 400 PUBLIC BUILDINGS, LINCOLN MEMORIAL, TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER, COURTHOUSES, SCHOOLHOUSES, ALL AROUND THE NATION AND THE WORLD.

MARBLE IS A GREAT PART OF THE HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES.

THE US IS 250 YEARS OLD.

WE ARE PART OF THIS GREAT HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES.

- THIS HISTORY HAS TO JUST CONTINUE TO BE TAUGHT AND EXPOSED SO THAT PEOPLE REALLY UNDERSTAND THAT THOSE MEMORIALS ARE A HUGE ENDEAVOR.

- AT ITS HEIGHT AROUND 1914, THERE WERE 1,400 PEOPLE LIVING IN MARBLE.

AFTER THE TOMB OF THE UNKNOWN SOLDIER WAS SENT OFF TO WASHINGTON, D.C., MARBLE BEGAN TO GO DOWNHILL RAPIDLY.

- THE PROGRESS OF THE QUARRY DEPENDED ON WHAT KIND OF CONTRACTS THEY HAD.

AND IF THEY DIDN'T HAVE SOMETHING BIG GOING ON, PEOPLE WOULD START TO LEAVE.

AS THE WAR CAME ON... FEWER AND FEWER PEOPLE WERE AVAILABLE TO WORK.

- A LOT OF THE PROBLEM CAME IN WORLD WAR I WHEN A LOT OF WORKERS LEFT TO JOIN ITALY IN THE WAR.

ON TOP OF THAT, STRUCTURAL STEEL WAS NOW BEING USED IN BUILDINGS, AND THERE WAS THE GREAT DEPRESSION.

- BY 1941, THEY JUST DIDN'T HAVE ANY CONTRACTS.

PEOPLE HAD TO MOVE OUT.

PLUS, THERE WERE A COUPLE BIG FLOODS HERE IN TOWN.

THE MUD WAS UP TO THE SECOND STORY WINDOWS.

YOU'RE GOING TO MOVE JUST TO SURVIVE.

THE QUARRY ACTUALLY CLOSED THE SAME TIME THE MILL DID.

IN ABOUT 1940 AND ALL OF THAT EXPENSIVE EQUIPMENT WAS USED FOR THE WAR EFFORTS.

THE TRACKS WERE ALL TORN OUT.

THE RAILROAD IS GONE.

EVERYTHING WAS JUST OUT OF HERE.

- THE TOWN KIND OF SHRIVELED AND WENT AWAY.

I HEARD AT SOME PARTS THERE WERE ONLY LIKE MAYBE 20 PEOPLE IN TOWN.

- DAILY LIFE IN MARBLE WAS VERY SLOW.

THERE WEREN'T ANY BUSINESSES.

MOST OF THE PEOPLE AT THAT TIME WORKED FOR THE COUNTY.

THEY'RE SNOWPLOW DRIVERS OR TRUCK DRIVERS, AND THEY WORKED ON THE ROADS.

- IT PRETTY MUCH WAS A GHOST TOWN.

I THINK THAT BECAUSE OF THE REMOTENESS OF THIS AREA, I DON'T THINK PEOPLE THOUGHT IT WOULD EVER REOPEN.

BUT THERE'S A LOT OF MARBLE LEFT.

- THE ARRIVAL OF MORE PEOPLE IN MARBLE BEGAN REALLY IN THE 1980S.

IN 1989, A GUY NAMED STACY DUNN FIGURED THAT WITH THIS TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF MARBLE HERE, THERE WAS A REVIVAL IN IT NOW BECAUSE PEOPLE WERE USING IT FOR TILE.

- THEY DECIDED TO CHECK IN WHAT IS THE MARKET FOR WHITE MARBLE.

AND THIS WHITE MARBLE REALLY WASN'T ON THE MARKET BECAUSE IT WASN'T BEING QUARRIED.

AND SO THAT GROUP WENT TO WORK ON TRYING TO REINTRODUCE IT.

- I STARTED WORKING UP THERE BACK IN 1990 WHEN THE QUARRY WAS FIRST OPENED.

I WAS ON A DEVELOPMENT CREW.

YOU CAN IMAGINE ANY BUSINESS THAT WAS CLOSED FOR 50 YEARS, WATER POURING IN.

THERE WAS PROBABLY ABOUT, I FORGET, A COUPLE MILLION GALLONS WORTH OF WATER THAT WERE INSIDE THE QUARRY ITSELF.

AND SO THAT ALL HAD TO BE PUMPED OUT.

AT THE SAME TIME, WE HAD SOME PEOPLE COME IN.

THEY BLASTED AN ENTRANCE PORTAL SO THAT WE COULD DRIVE THE EQUIPMENT INTO THE QUARRY AT FLOOR LEVEL.

- THIS IS THAT TUNNEL.

NOW, IT'S ALL WHITE MARBLE, BUT IT'S DISCOLORED BY THE DIESEL SMOKE.

AND THIS IS THE ONE THAT WAS PUT IN IN 1990 SO THAT WE COULD LITERALLY DRIVE INTO THE QUARRY AND NOT HAVE TO LIFT BLOCKS OUT OF THE WINDOWS.

- OF COURSE, LIKE MOST BUSINESSES, THEY HAD THEIR PROBLEMS.

REX LOESBY ACTUALLY OWNED IT FROM 1990 TO, I THINK IT WAS 2003.

AND A COMPANY CALLED POLYCOR HAD IT FOR PROBABLY ABOUT FIVE YEARS.

THE CURRENT OWNER NOW IS R.E.D.

GRANITI OF ITALY.

- MY NAME IS MAZZUCCHELLI STEFANO.

I'M A QUARRY MASTER HERE IN THE COLORADO STONE QUARRY.

I WORK IN THIS BUSINESS FOR 48 YEARS.

THERE IS 23 PEOPLE WORKING IN THE QUARRY.

WE DO AN AMAZING JOB WITH OUR MARBLE, REALLY.

THIS IS GOOD.

THE BEST STUFF THAT YOU CAN SEE IN AMERICA, WE DO.

- AVERAGE DAY HERE AT THE QUARRY STARTS OUT TO LOAD OUT AROUND 7 O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING.

THE GUYS THEN JUMP IN COMPANY VEHICLES.

[OVERLAP CHATTER] THEY HEAD UP TO THE MINE.

IT'S ABOUT THREE MILES.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - ALRIGHT, BE READY NOW, WE ARE AT THE QUARRY.

(MUSIC PLAYING) - ONCE THEY GET UP TO THE MINE, THEY'LL GO TO THEIR EQUIPMENT AND THEY'LL DO ANY ASSORTMENT OF CUTS OR DRILL HOLES, WIRE SAWS.

AND THEN THEY WILL CUT THOSE INTO WALLS AND THEY'LL TIP THOSE WALLS OVER.

- GO DOWN.

GO DOWN.

DOWN, DOWN, DOWN.

- WHERE WE'LL BRING IN OTHER EQUIPMENT TO TRIM THOSE DOWN TO SIZE WHERE THE LOADER CAN HANDLE THEM.

- I WORKED IN THE MINE FOR A LITTLE OVER 10 YEARS NOW.

I'VE DONE PRETTY MUCH A LITTLE BIT OF EVERYTHING HERE.

I'M DEANN BACA, AND I'M RIGHT HERE.

I'M CHECKING THE BITS ON THE FANTINI TO MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING'S GOOD.

SO WHEN I GO BACK IN TO CUT, THAT EVERYTHING'S GOOD AND READY TO GO, WE STAY PRETTY BUSY.

- THEY'LL GET GRADED, WHICH IS THEY'LL BE CHECKED OUT FOR QUALITY.

- THERE IS RAW MATERIAL LIKE LEATHER, GOLDEN VEIN.

BEAUTIFUL.

- WHAT THEY'RE LOOKING FOR TO SEE IF THERE'S ANY KIND OF FRACTURES OR DISCOLORATIONS OR SOFT MATERIAL THAT MAYBE ISN'T AS GOOD.

ONCE IT GOES THROUGH THAT, WE'LL DO A FINAL TRIM ON THEM.

ONCE THEY'RE FINAL TRIM, THEY GET APPROVED AND THEY GET SHIPPED TO DELTA, WHERE OUR FACTORY'S AT.

- WE PRODUCE BETWEEN 600-800 TONS MONTHLY.

BECAUSE WE KEEP THE BEST AND WE WORK ONLY IN THE GOOD AREA.

WE SEND THAT ONLY THE PERFECT BLOCK.

- THE WATER WE USE AT THE MINE IS COMPLETELY RECYCLED.

WE ACTUALLY HAVE AN OLDER QUARRY.

WE CALL IT THE WASHINGTON GALLERY.

THE GALLERY CATCHES RUNOFF WATER ALL SPRING LONG.

WHICH GIVES US ACCESS TO A MASSIVE WATER SUPPLY.

WE USE IT ON OUR SAWS, WE USE IT ON OUR EQUIPMENT, AND IT KEEPS THE DUST DOWN, SO IT'S ALL CONSTANTLY RECYCLED.

- THIS ONE GIVES YOU THE IDEA HOW IT WAS DONE BACK IN THE DAYS.

BASICALLY, THEY WERE JUST DRILLING HOLES AND TRYING TO SPLIT THE MARBLE, YOU KNOW, INSERTING WEDGES IN THE HOLES, YOU KNOW, AND THEY WERE USING EXPLOSIVES.

NOW YOU'LL SEE INSIDE, YOU KNOW, WE HAVE STATE-OF-THE -ART EQUIPMENT.

EVEN, LIKE, THESE LOADERS MAKE, LIKE, OUR LIFE MUCH EASIER COMPARED TO 100 YEARS AGO.

- IT'S OUTSTANDING WHEN YOU'RE MOVING AND TIPPING WALLS THAT ARE 300,000 POUNDS AND YOU'RE USING EQUIPMENT TO MOVE 80,000 POUND BLOCKS.

THAT'S A PRETTY COOL OPERATION.

IT'S AWESOME TO SEE WHAT IT GOES FROM IN THE MOUNTAIN TO WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE AS A FINISHED PRODUCT.

- I'M SO FORTUNATE THAT I'VE BEEN ABLE TO CARVE FRESHLY QUARRIED STONE OF BIGGER DIMENSION.

I'VE DONE SOME BIG 20- AND 30-TON PIECES IN MY DAY.

THE FACT THAT THE QUARRY HAS REOPENED, IT'S BRINGING A LOT OF PEOPLE HERE, A LOT OF ARTISTS.

YOU'LL SEE WHEN YOU GO TO THE MARBLE MARBLE WORKSHOP, AND EVERYBODY'S SO EXCITED, IT'S JUST FUN TO WATCH.

- THE MARBLE MARBLE, WHICH WE NAMED MARBLE MARBLE BECAUSE WE CARVE MARBLE IN MARBLE COLORADO, HAPPENS EVERY SUMMER.

IT'S HAPPENED; THIS IS THE 37TH YEAR.

RIGHT NOW, I THINK WE HAVE 47 CARVERS PER SESSION.

WE HAVE QUITE A WAITING LIST.

- I WOULD RECOMMEND STARTING OUT WITH TRAJAN.

JUST THE BASIC LETTER FORM.

- PEOPLE WHO WANT TO LEARN HOW TO CARVE MARBLE.

PEOPLE WHO WORK ALONE ALL YEAR LONG, THEY NEED THE INSPIRATION OF OTHER CARVERS, THEY COME TO MARBLE MARBLE SYMPOSIUM.

- WHEN YOU COME INTO THIS PLACE, YOU SEE ALMOST LIKE A MUSHROOM CLOUD OF MARBLE DUST GOING UP, UP, UP, UP, AND THEN IT SETTLES DOWN.

- IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL TO JUST BE ALONE WITH THE ROCK AND LET IT TELL ME WHERE I SHOULD GO WITH THE TOOLS.

IT'S JUST WONDERFUL.

I HAVE LEARNED EVERYTHING.

I DIDN'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT PNEUMATIC TOOLS, THE HAMMERS, RASPS, ALL THAT STUFF, CHISELING.

I'VE GONE TO THE DETAIL CARVING WORKSHOP.

I WENT TO ROUGHING OUT, WHICH MEANS LIKE SHAPING YOUR STONE HOW YOU WANT IT.

EVERYONE'S REALLY NICE.

EVERYONE'S REALLY HELPFUL AND GIVING OF THEMSELVES.

THEY'RE ALL REALLY HAPPY TO TALK ABOUT THEIR PROCESS AND LIKE WHAT THEY'RE MAKING.

- I'M CURRENTLY WORKING ON LIKE A KING COBRA AND I'M GOING TO INTEGRATE THE NATURAL STONE INTO THE BACK OF THE HEADPIECE.

IT KIND OF LIKE CLEARS YOUR MIND.

IT'S THE ONLY TIME IN MY LIFE THAT IS JUST QUIET, YOU KNOW?

IT'S REALLY WHAT MADE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH IT.

- I WALK AROUND AND I VISIT THE SPIRITS OF MARBLE MARBLE.

ALL THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE COME HERE HAVE LEFT SOMETHING.

I REMEMBER THE STRUGGLE AND I REMEMBER THE JOY.

THE INTERACTION, ALL THE SHARING THAT HAPPENED THAT MAKES THIS A SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM.

- THE ARTIST COMMUNITY THAT'S POPPED UP HERE IS FULL OF CHARACTERS.

WE LOVE THEM.

THE TOWN CERTAINLY HAS EMBRACED AND THE ARTISTS HAVE HELPED CREATE THIS TOWN OVER THE YEARS.

- MARBLE IS MAGICAL.

I HATE TO SOUND CLICHE, BUT IT IS.

IT'S A VERY SPECIAL PLACE.

- THE FACT THAT MARBLE IS NOWHERE NEAR THE SIZE THAT IT USED TO BE.

IN ITS HEYDAY IS JUST AN INTERESTING THOUGHT.

THIS TOWN USED TO BE MUCH MORE DEVELOPED THAN IT IS NOW TODAY.

- I WOULD SAY IT'S A UNIQUE LITTLE TOWN.

WE ARE WELCOMING TO JUST ABOUT EVERY KIND OF PERSON THAT YOU CAN IMAGINE HERE.

PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD.

- AND I THINK FOR MOST OF THE PEOPLE THAT LIVE HERE, IT IS THE QUIETNESS, THE CALMNESS, THE SECURITY.

WE'RE UP HERE FOR ABOUT THE SAME REASON.

WE LOVE THE PEACE.

- I ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO COME UP HERE AND SEE THE BEAUTY OF IT.

IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO SHARE THIS WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD.

IT'S A BEAUTIFUL PLACE.

YOU CAN WALK FOR MILES AND NOT SEE PEOPLE UP HERE IF YOU WANT TO.

IT'S REALLY WONDERFUL.

HELLO, MR.

CROW.

- I THINK THE FUTURE OF MARBLE LOOKS LIKE A LOT HOW IT DOES NOW.

I KIND OF FEEL THAT WHAT YOU SEE IS WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO GET.

AND I THINK THAT'S HOW A LOT OF PEOPLE LIKE IT.

- MARBLE IS A DENSE STONE.

IT'S NOT A STONE THAT YOU CARVE THAT YOU HAVE TO KEEP INSIDE.

SO THAT MAKES IT VERY RESILIENT AND BEAUTIFUL AND EXTENSION OF THE EARTH.

ACTUALLY, I KIND OF THINK THAT THE ONES OF US THAT LIVE HERE FULL TIME ARE RESILIENT TOO.

AND I DO BELIEVE THAT ANYONE THAT COMES HERE, THEY FALL IN LOVE WITH THE STONE AND THE PLACE.

(MUSIC PLAYING) I CANT IMAGINE ONE WITHOUT THE OTHER.