Mount Granite Quarries
VIN OLIVER, reports on the history and development of Mount Granite Quarries.
MOUNT Granite Quarries is a dimensional stone quarry situated on Mount Alexander Harcourt, it’s a small family business run by Vin Oliver, wife Val, son Brett who is the fourth generation of quarrymen in the family, and daughter Candice.
The business started in the early 1940s, by Joseph Tingay (Vin’s grandfather). He was manager of Harcourt Granite when he was approached by a Melbourne monumental firm to set up a new quarry who could not meet demand from current suppliers on the Mount.
The quarry partnership began as Joseph Tingay, son Roy and son-in-law Ted Oliver (Vin’s father who had worked at Blights Quarry and Harcourt Granite).
A quarry was opened on the upper eastern slope of the Mount. For a period of time the business traded as Star Granite. The business name was not registered and the name had been taken by another business, so the name Mount Granite Quarries became the new name registered in 1983. After Joseph passed away, Roy and Ted continued the business together until Vin joined them.
Roy retired in 1983 and Vin joined his father in the partnership. In the late 1980’s, an application was made to extend the area of the lease but this was rejected and we were offered an alternative site on the lower slope of the Mount. All parties agreed on this site on the understanding that no more leases or extensions of leases would be possible on Mount Alexander.
Today, most quarries are associated more with blast rock rather than stone worked into something of structure or beauty. In dimensional stone quarrying we try to use a minimum amount of explosives as too much blasting can cause fractures in the stone which is no good for monumental work.
While modern machinery has made the work a lot faster, the method has not changed. The method of dimensional stone quarrying begins with blasting and removing overburden, then one hole is drilled to determine the depth in the good stone. This hole is filled with blasting powder and fired.
From here it is all cut with what is called plugs and feathers. Holes are drilled about 150mm deep by 100mm apart along the length of the stone then feathers and lugs are placed in the holes. The plugs are then hit from one end of the stone to the other with a sledge hammer (10LB) until the stone is split.
The stone is then removed from the quarry face, and the process starts again, cutting it down to a size that the customer has ordered. It is very hard to compete with stone that is imported from overseas. The demand for Australian dimensional stone had dropped quite a lot with look a like products coming into Australia so we have branched out into other areas to stay viable. We now not only supply monumental masons, we produce monuments, headstones, landscaping rocks, feature stones, walling rock, paving, garden edging, house lintels, all forms of bench tops, and small quantities of crushed Harcourt Granite. We also install monuments.
We may only be small, but we are proud to still be producing one of the most renowned dimensional stones in the world. We wish to thank the CMPA for the support we have had over the past eight years- without you we may not still have been doing what we love.
60 SECONDS WITH A VOTING MEMBER…
What is your name?
Vin Oliver
Who do you work for?
Myself (Mount Granite Quarries)
How many years have you worked for this business?
Over 40 years
How many years have you been involved in the Industry?
Over 40 years
What is your role at the company?
Manager
What does your job involve?
All aspects of running a business
What is the best part of your job?
Passing on the skills in quarrying stone to my son that my father taught me, and working together as a family.
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