Sen. Dan Swecker, R-Rochester, whose district includes the Thurston County town of Tenino, has introduced SB 5561which would make Tenino sandstone the offical state rock for Washington State. Sandstone rock, originating in Tenino, can be found in many buildings throughout Tenino’s main street, the east wing of the State Capitol building in Olympia, many buildings throughout Washington state and elsewhere in the United States including the Washington Monument in Washington, In DC.
Sandstone was discovered in south Thurston County in 1888. The following year, Samual W. Fenton and George VanTine opened Tenino’s first sandstone quarry. A second quarry soon followed east of town on the Military Road, and was called Eureka Sandstone Co. A third quarry was located on Lemon Hill west of Tenino in the early 1900’s by H.P. Scheel and William McArthur under the name of the Hercules Stone Co. By then, Tenino’s sandstone had become famous for its excellent carving qualities and fine grain that hardened with time. After the fire on 1905 that burned down a majority of main street, Tenino rebuilt using the local sandstone as an advertisement for the local industry. Within 20 years, the demand for sandstone was replaced by the use of concrete as a building material. Some of Tenino’s quarries operated as late as the 1930’s, but only on a limited basis. One of the quarries was reopened in 1990 and has still been operating on a smaller scale. The original quarry, located at the Tenino City Park, now serves as a community swimming pool during the summer. It is 90 feet deep and fed by natural springs.
For more information on Tenino sandstone and the town’s history, you can visit the Tenino Museum.
