You might want to check the NRHP for a nomination of a series of kilns around Waukesha, WI.  Also the Sandusky , Ohio area had an extensive lime industry.

Rich Green
Historic Archaeological Research
4338 Hadley Court
West Lafayette, IN 47906
(765) 464-8735
http://www.har-indy.com

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Marsha King 
  To: [log in to unmask] 
  Sent: Thursday, April 11, 2002 4:14 PM
  Subject: Query: mid- to late-19th c Lime Kiln


  During a recent survey conducted in advance of a highway project in Doniphan County, Kansas, (northeast corner of the state) our contractor identified a probable lime kiln.  I have not yet seen the feature and he has not yet turned in a site form.  

  In his words, it is "a cylindrical feature, now observable as a circular to oval feature in plan view, 2-3 m in diameter, exposed on the lower slope of a loess ridge adjacent to a small drainageway containing limestone. The interior of the feature contains a gray, almost shale-like dirt fill. The outside edge of the feature had a 5-30 cm wide band of burned earth. An unknown amount of the upper part of the feature had been lost due to erosion, but the upper edge of the feature on the low end of the slope extended another 60 cm or 24 inches into the ground before terminating in a burned earth floor."

  I have searched through my personal library and found very little about lime kilns of any time period.  A few others have been reported in the state, but none have ever been investigated.

  Any information or references would be helpful & I will pass it on to the contractor.  Has anyone had experience with lime kilns, especially from the mid- to late-19th c. and/or from the Plains region (excavation, background research, literature references, personal experience, etc.)?

  Thanks in advance for your assistance.

  Marsha

  *-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
  Marsha K. King
  Archeologist II
  Environmental Services Section
  Bureau of Design
  Kansas Department of Transportation
  Docking State Office Building, 8th Floor
  915 SW Harrison
  Topeka, KS   66612-1568
  Phone - 785-296-8414
  Fax - 785-296-8399
  E-Mail - [log in to unmask]