{"nrhp_refnum":"76000217","name":"Olema Lime Kilns","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"4 mi. SE of Olema on CA 1","address_restricted":false,"city":"Olema","county":"Marin County","state":"CA","lat":37.98838927200006,"lon":-122.74715193899999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-10-08","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Ruins of three barrel-shaped limestone lime kilns and an adjoining storage platform, built against a hillside on the east bank of Olema Creek, south of Olema in Marin County, California. They were built between 1850 and 1852.","why_significant":"The kilns represent a Gold Rush-triggered, pioneer American effort to start a lime-producing industry in Marin County, only two years after California passed from Mexico to the United States. The enterprise was short-lived and unsuccessful, which the form says does not reduce its significance. It is described as regionally significant in the area of industry.","narrative":"Three long-abandoned, barrel-shaped stone kilns lie in ruins against a hillside beside Olema Creek, south of Olema in Marin County, California. Built between 1850 and 1852, they formed a single structure about seventy feet long and sixteen feet high, with a low stone bin at the north end for storing burned lime. In 1850 James A. Shorb and William F. Mercer leased land from Rafael Garcia for burning lime, quarrying stone and cutting timber, hoping to supply a San Francisco swollen by the Gold Rush. Archeological evidence suggests the kilns were fired no more than about twelve times in all. Cheaper lime from other sources probably doomed the venture, which failed between 1853 and 1856. Douglas firs grew from the rubble, and stones were carried off for other uses. The kilns were listed as an early American attempt to build a lime industry in the region, though the business itself did not last.","period_of_significance":"1850-1852","architect_builder":"James A. Shorb, William Mercer","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Long-abandoned ruins in a park setting. The form lists the condition as excellent and the property as unoccupied. Kiln No. 3 has lost its arched entrance, and trees and vandalism have damaged the kilns.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.366207-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/76000217.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76000217/a39fc14c98-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76000217/a39fc14c98-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Roger Sturtevant, photographer","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lime_Kiln_(Olema,_CA).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Roger Sturtevant, photographer</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lime_Kiln_(Olema,_CA).jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100002286","name":"Olema Valley Dairy Ranches Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/california/olema-valley-dairy-ranches-historic-district-100002286/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123859696","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olema_Lime_Kilns","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7086338"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/marin-county/olema-lime-kilns-76000217/"}