The Granite That Built a Naval Powerhouse
A Seattle contractor bypasses local stone to import Canadian granite for the massive new Port Orchard dry dock, sparks a cross-border trade friction.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Mr. R. L. Fox, of Seattle, contractor for the stonework of the new United States dry dock at Port Orchard, Wash., has just completed arrangements with Mr. J. C. Prevost, of the Nelson island quarry, for all the granite required for the dock. Mr. Fox has secured the exclusive right for the whole output of the quarry, and will work it himself. The new dock is to be over 600 feet long, the largest in the United States, and with only two bigger ones in the world. The British Columbia granite is the choice of the bureau of yards and docks at Washington City. Mr. Fox sent samples of Washington granite as well as specimens from several British Columbia quarries without labels, with the result that the bureau pitched upon the Nelson island stone as far superior to any other. It weighs 184 pounds to the foot, the heaviest granite that Mr. Fox has ever met with. Mr. Fox states that he will hire all his quarry men in British Columbia, for although he can get men on the American side for $1.75 per day, while he has to pay $2.50 for Canadians, the local men are the best quarrymen. Even with a duty of 10 cents a foot on the stone, the Nelson island quarry can be worked so easily that it is cheaper to use than the inferior American stone.
“Even with a duty of 10 cents a foot on the stone, the Nelson island quarry can be worked so easily that it is cheaper to use than the inferior American stone.”
The Port Orchard dry dock remains a critical part of the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard today. This story highlights a recurring regional tension: the preference for high-quality cross-border resources over domestic alternatives, even when industrial protectionism is at play.
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