M. Davidson Lime Kiln

M. Davidson Lime Kiln in Sussex, Wisconsin, on November 19, 2001

As many as nine lime kilns were operating in the area of Sussex, Wisconsin, from as early as 1840. The abandoned M. Davidson lime kiln is the only one remaining in Sussex. It was built by the Wisconsin Lime & Stone Company prior to 1891, perhaps as early as 1873. The kiln is approximately 35 feet tall with exterior walls of heavily-mortared limestone. It has two rectangular burning shafts lined with refractory brick and granite with rounded corners for the uninterrupted movement of the hot, sticky pieces of limestone, which was fed from carts into the top of the kiln, accessed by an inclined wooden skid. Firing eyes originally covered by cast iron doors are on the east and west sides, and finished lime was drawn from arched opening at the base of the west side. This kiln operated continuously in all seasons until 1910, when the Chicago & North Western Railway was built on reclaimed quarry land to the north, and the kiln was abandoned.

Chicago & North Western Railway Bridge over the Wisconsin Central in Sussex, Wisconsin, on November 19, 2001

This through plate girder bridge adjacent to the kiln carries the Chicago & North Western Railway line through Sussex over the Wisconsin Central. It is probably not the original bridge from 1910, though it is unclear when it was built. The Chicago & North Western was merged into the Union Pacific on April 24, 1995.