Posted by Steven Schrenk on Sep 9, 2016 1:34:27 PM
From the backcountry of Virginia to the chemical labs of Merck, and now to Brooklyn brownstones, Alberene soapstone has moved with the times, without changing at all.
Before the turn of the century, the small town of Schuyler, Virginia was transformed into a bustling hub built around the soapstone deposits and quarries dotting the region, where more than 2,000 tradesmen worked. Now 130 years later, traces of its bustling past can be found in the most unlikely of places, and sometimes with nameplates bearing the Alberene name. Giving every product and slab their stamp of approval, these metal Alberene Stone plaques have become the mark of excellence in establishing provenance of historic sinks that can be found in antique and architectural salvage stores across the country.
Before there were a variety of options available, Alberene Soapstone was mass-producing large utility sinks for decades and supplying them to New York City, Chicago and other urban centers throughout the US. These pieces were the original luxury stone surfaces for American families, and made their way into brownstones, rowhouses and even to the suburbs. With the passing of time and the change in homeownership, new families now inherit these iconic soapstone behemoths and designers even seek them out for their own projects.
While heading to a meeting with a local Denver fabricator recently, Polycor’s West Coast Brand Manager Lance McCardle stumbled upon one of these antique sinks sitting outside the shop. “It had been in the basement of an old home in Denver,” Lance said. A Virginia native himself, he went on to add, “I didn’t think these sinks were sold west of the Mississippi!” It just goes to show that you never know what you’ll find in a fabricator’s boneyard.
Read The Full Blog: Historic American Soapstone Makes Comeback In Brooklyn
