Indiana limestone
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Indiana limestone or Bedford limestone is a common term for Salem limestone, a geological formation primarily quarried in south central Indiana between Bloomington and Bedford. Salem limestone, like all limestone, is a rock primarily formed of calcium carbonate. The limestone was deposited over millions of years as marine fossils decomposed at the bottom of a shallow inland sea which covered most of the present-day Midwestern United States.
The first Indiana limestone quarry was started in 1827, and by 1929 Hoosier quarries yielded 340,000 m³ (12 million cubic feet) of usable stone. Buildings such as the Empire State Building, The Pentagon, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum feature Indiana limestone in their exteriors.
- Indiana Geological Survey explanation of Indiana Limestone (http://igs.indiana.edu/geology/minRes/indianaLimestone/index.cfm)