Fall 2004 - National Ready Mixed Concrete Association

feature
Welcome to
Located among the firs tucked along the
Cascade Mountains of Washington is a
locality known more for its abundance
of fine fishing and deer hunting than its past.
Situated on the banks of the Baker River where
it joins the Skagit, it is winter home of nesting
bald eagles. The town’s time has come and
gone, but still pulsates with the energy of any
small community located far from the hustle
and bustle of major metropolitan cities. Life is
slower; everyone knows your name, and the
Friday night high school football games play to
a faithful crowd. The high school teams are
known as the “Concrete Lions.” But this town
has a different, more unique story; one rich in
the history of building these metropolitan
cities, one that helped shape the development
of the Pacific Northwest, and it was all built on
cement and concrete.
The town of “Concrete” was the site of
Washington State’s first cement production
facility. Founded on a deep and rich deposit of
limestone and clay, the town became the center
for manufacturing Portland cement. At its
peak, there were six kilns in operation with a
combined capacity of 5,200 bbl per day, each
powered by sub bituminous coal purchased by
rail from the Bellingham Coal Company.
Limestone was first transported from the quarry
to the mill by a two-mile standard gauge
railway and sometime before 1930, converted
10 ı FALL 2004