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Close up view of the Round Top Cement Mill. Wooden structure on the upper right is where the limestone kilns were housed. The kilns which could get upwards of 1832°F in order to fire the limestone to make quicklime. The use of wood to shelter the kilns caused the Mill to burn to the ground three different times before it closed in the early 20th century. Men who worked at the cement mill used the towpath to get to work and crossed the canal on the foot bridge seen in the foreground.
127.4 Mile
NPS File 1444
See also Round Top Cement Invoice, 1882
The Round Top Cement Mill was constructed in 1837 by George Shafer and was sold to Robert Bridges and Charles W. Henderson in 1863. The cement mill would burn to the ground and be rebuilt in 1846, 1897, and lastly in 1903. During the time the mill was operating, it claimed to produce up to 300 barrels a day of natural rock cement with a crew between 50–100 men. The cement was used up and down the Potomac Valley, especially during the construction of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal. It wasn’t long after the 1903 fire and the construction of the Western Maryland Railway that the company officially ceased operations.