Description: View of the Glacial Grooves on the north side of Kelleys Island, Ohio, ca. 1930-1960. These are the largest such grooves in the world that can be easily seen. They were created in limestone bedrock about 18,000 years ago during the Ice Age. A trough 400 feet long, 35 feet wide, and up to 10 feet deep remains today. The ice, probably hundreds of feet thick, moved from the north into what is now the Lake Erie basin. The grooves contain marine fossils that are 350 to 400 million years old. Other grooves on the island were destroyed by quarrying. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02982
Subjects: Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Geology--Ohio; Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; Glacial erosion--Ohio; Kelleys Island (Ohio)--Description and travel
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Original description reads: "Kellys Island." The Glacial Grooves on the north side of Kelleys Island are the largest easily-accessible such grooves in the world. They were scoured into solid limestone bedrock about 18,000 years ago by the great ice sheet which covered part of North America. A trough 400-feet long, 35-feet wide, and up to 10-feet deep remains today. The Glacial Grooves are a National Natural Landmark, part of the Ohio History Connection statewide network of historic sites. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F09_007_001
Subjects: Glacial landforms--Ohio; Kelleys Island (Ohio)--History; Natural features
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Drawing of Inscription Rock, located on the south shore of Kelleys Island in Erie County, Ohio. The rock is marked with prehistoric American Indian pictographs. The flat-topped limestone slab displays carvings of animals and human figures. Discovered partly buried in the shoreline in 1833, the 32 foot by 21 foot rock is now entirely exposed. Much eroded by the elements, it is now protected by a roof and viewing platform. Archaeologists believe the inscriptions date from sometime between AD 1200 and the present. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02962
Subjects: Erie County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Kelleys Island (Ohio)--History
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Inscription Rock on the shoreline of Kelleys Island, Erie County, Ohio, ca. 1886-1888. This photograph is part of a collection compiled by Henry Howe while researching the 1889 edition of his book "Historical Collections of Ohio." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00504
Subjects: Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Five photographs document the glacial grooves found on Kelleys Island as they looked in the 1930s or 1940s. The photographs measure 6" x 3.5" (15.24 x 8.09 cm). The glacial grooves on the north side of Kelleys Island are the largest easily accessible such grooves in the world. They were scoured into solid limestone bedrock about 18,000 years ago by the great ice sheet that covered part of North America. Remaining today is a trough that measures 400-feet long, 35-feet wide, and up to 10-feet deep. The ice, probably hundreds of feet thick, flowed from the north in what is now the Lake Erie basin. The Devonian limestone containing the grooves contains marine fossils that are 350 to 400 million years old. Many other grooves were quarried away during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3274_6059734_001
Subjects: Geography and Natural Resources; Rocks; Glaciers; Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; Tourism
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows, what is most likely, gravel from the quarry on Kelley's Island, being loaded from a railcar onto a cargo barge. The Kelley Island Lime & Transport Company, founded in 1896, and which was once the largest producer of limestone and lime products in the world, closed the early 1960s. Numerous ruins of these operations and quarries now dot the island. The East Quarry closed in 1940 and is now a state park. Kelley’s Island, originally known as Island Number 6 and later Cunningham Island, was renamed in 1840 for brothers Datus and Irad Kelley, who were largely responsible for cultivating the island's quarrying, logging and winemaking industries. In 1975, 23 acres on the island's southern shore were designated a historic district, the "Kelleys Island South Shore District," and added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1988, the district was renamed to the "Kelleys Island Historic District" and expanded to include the entire island. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F09_032_1
Subjects: Limestone--Ohio; Erie, Lake, Coast (Ohio); Quarries and quarrying--Ohio; Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; National Register of Historic Places
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Table Rock is located on the northeast peninsula of Kelley’s Island. Kelleys Island is in fact a mass of solid limestone rock, lifted about twelve feet out of the Lake Erie, and rising in some points to an elevation of 40 or 50 feet above the level of the lake. Geologically, the island consists of successive strata of Columbus limestone with as many as 60 layers which vary in thickness from 2 to 8 inches and full of marine fossils. The eastern shores of the island have mostly been worn smooth from a westbound glacier, producing gentle shores full of rocky beaches. Western facing shores are more sharp and jagged, with erosion caused from the waves of lake. Table Rock is an excellent example, having been separated from the mainland from wave erosion. Standing on a single pedestal, it has undermined to such an extent that is almost ready to topple over. Columbus limestone can be found in a north-south line from Kelleys Island in Lake Erie to south of Columbus and many quarries are, or have been, actively removing this high-calcium limestone for use in production of cement, rip-rap, driveway gravel and road base, agricultural lime, and other uses. The unit was formed in a clear, shallow, tropical sea that covered the state. Fossils of marine animals are abundant in the Columbus Limestone. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F08_003_001
Subjects: Limestone--Ohio; Formations (Geology)--Ohio; Erie, Lake, Coast (Ohio); Lake Erie Islands (Ohio); Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; National Register of Historic Places
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the West Side Dock on Kelley’s Island. The West Dock was built in 1906 by the Kelleys Island Lime & Transport company and was located roughly in the middle of the west shore of the island. Sometimes called the Stone Dock, it is elevated pier made of steel and wooden trestles, with railway tracks running along the top, and designed to load crushed limestone into barges from either side. Within six years of being built, more than 500,000 tons were being shipped each year with as many as 8 steam locomotives needed to pull up to 150 full train cars. The company's island quarrying operation comprised more than 1,000 acres; especially impressive considering the whole island is only 2,888 acres. The lakeside ore dock was modified to a "pocket" structure in 1910. This greatly improved efficiency, as it allowed limestone to be stored in large bins until it could be loaded onto ships. While quarrying continues to be a major industry on the island, The Kelley Island Lime & Transport Company, founded in 1896, and which was once the largest producer of limestone and lime products in the world, closed the early 1960s. Numerous ruins of these operations and quarries now dot the island. The East Quarry closed in 1940 and is now a state park. The whole of Kelley’s Island was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F08_004_001
Subjects: Limestone--Ohio; Quarries and quarrying--Ohio; Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; National Register of Historic Places
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the West Side Dock on Kelley’s Island. The West Dock was built in 1906 by the Kelleys Island Lime & Transport company and was located roughly in the middle of the west shore of the island. Sometimes called the Stone Dock, it is elevated pier made of steel and wooden trestles, with railway tracks running along the top, and designed to load crushed limestone into barges from either side. Within six years of being built, more than 500,000 tons were being shipped each year with as many as 8 steam locomotives needed to pull up to 150 full train cars. The company's island quarrying operation comprised more than 1,000 acres; especially impressive considering the whole island is only 2,888 acres. The lakeside ore dock was modified to a "pocket" structure in 1910. This greatly improved efficiency, as it allowed limestone to be stored in large bins until it could be loaded onto ships. While quarrying continues to be a major industry on the island, The Kelley Island Lime & Transport Company, founded in 1896, and which was once the largest producer of limestone and lime products in the world, closed the early 1960s. Numerous ruins of these operations and quarries now dot the island. The East Quarry closed in 1940 and is now a state park. The whole of Kelley’s Island was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F09_012_1
Subjects: Limestone--Ohio; Quarries and quarrying--Ohio; Historic sites--Ohio--Kelleys Island--Pictorial works; National Register of Historic Places
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: This 4.5" x 3.5" (11.43 x 8.86 cm) photograph shows a crowd gathered at a boat ramp on Kelleys Island in Lake Erie. The photograph was taken on August 10, 1940. The ferry docked at the ramp is named The Messenger. Kelleys Island was the center of limestone production in the Great Lakes in the late nineteenth century when 16 limestone kilns produced lime on the island. Limestone quarries have, however, existed on Kelleys Island since 1833. Limestone was a popular building material, and lime was also used for agricultural purposes. The stone quarried at Kelleys Island was brought by rail to the docks, loaded onto ships, and then transported to places like Cleveland and Detroit. Several quarries operated on and off until 1972 when the last remaining operation, Kelleys Island Lime and Transport Company, donated its land to the state, becoming part of Lake Erie Islands State Park. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3273_6059728_001
Subjects: Transportation; Ships; Automobiles; Kelleys Island (Ohio)--Description and travel
Places: Sandusky (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio); Kelleys Island (Ohio); Ottawa County (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard of Inscription Rock, on the shoreline of Kelleys Island in Erie County, Ohio, ca. 1915-1935. This large limestone rock is located near at least two American Indian villages on Kelleys Island. The surface is covered in aboriginal art called petroglyphs. No one knows what these drawings mean, but it is thought that they might be messages left by America Indians about where they have been, where they are going next and how the fishing or hunting was. The caption on the bottom of the postcard reads "FAMOUS INDIAN INSCRIPTION ROCK. KELLEY'S ISLAND. OHIO." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL02930
Subjects: Kelleys Island (Ohio)--History; American Indian history and society
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Table Rock at Kelly's Island in Lake Erie. Erie County, Ohio. The photograph was taken ca. 1940-1949. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00338
Subjects: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio
Places: Kelleys Island (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)