A Landscape of "Incalculable Advantage": How the Occupation of Lime Burning was an Integral Agent of Change in Nineteenth-Century Southeastern Pennsylvania
Restricted (Penn State Only)
Author:
Glogovsky, Peter
Graduate Program:
American Studies
Degree:
Doctor of Philosophy
Document Type:
Dissertation
Date of Defense:
February 21, 2022
Committee Members:
Charles Kupfer, Major Field Member Anne Verplanck, Chair & Dissertation Advisor Anthony Buccitelli, Major Field Member Joseph Cecere, Outside Unit & Field Member John Rogers Haddad, Program Head/Chair
Keywords:
lime kiln ledgers quarry agriculture landscape business occupation
Abstract:
The production of lime, commonly made when limestone is exposed to heat, has not been analyzed in Pennsylvania as a skilled trade, business diversification strategy, or set of cultural landscapes. This dissertation presents the case that quarrying limestone and burning lime during the nineteenth century exhibited characteristics in response to dynamic customer requirements, evolving transportation infrastructure, and geographic constraints. Kiln technology development also contributed to the expansion of lime processing and consumption but was not the primary agent of change. Using account ledgers, I identify the role of each of these factors in shaping business practices and customer networks across southeast and south central Pennsylvania. Although these primary factors contributed to the development of other trades requiring resource extraction and refinement in the state, the specific skills required of lime burners point to the unique knowledge of thermodynamics, material science, environmental effects specific to lime. This new analysis is contextualized into a broader legacy found in the themes of public memory, cultural landscape, and language.
