Sourcing Materials at the Tennessee Marble Company

The Tennessee Marble Company, headquartered in Friendsville, Tennessee, is a locally owned company providing unique Tennessee marble for projects all over the country. They are the source for the new mantels for the Billiard Room and the Entry Hall.

These two mantels being reproduced are of a stone commonly referred to as chocolate marble, but it is identified in the trade as cedar marble. The color is found where there is an abundance of cedar trees. The quarry opened in 1890. Stone cut from the top of the quarry was darker than what is available today. The darkest marble is closest to the surface.

Today, unlike in the 19th century, computers are involved in design work, though, interestingly, there is still much hand carving required to produce intricate designs. It is still very much an artisan trade. Roughly 90 percent of this company’s work is restoration work with projects as varied as Grand Central Station in New York City to the Art Institute of Chicago. Learn more about this Tennessee company that makes a significant contributions to the nation’s architecture at tnmarble.com.