Carmeuse 1860 - 2010

This year, Carmeuse – a world leader in the production of lime and lime by-products – celebrates its 150th anniversary. For the occasion, Carmeuse asked Mercatorfonds to trace the firm’s history and the lime-making profession.

The book is divided into two parts. The first section describes the company’s growth from its beginnings in 1860 as a small Belgian firm to the multinational company it is today. The second part compliments the first, and gives the reader an understanding of daily life in the quarries, from the 19th century up to the Second World War, before the large-scale mechanisation of the profession.

Drawn from vast archival documentation, personal accounts by Carmeuse staff, and threaded through with numerous anecdotes, the text provides a unique look at Carmeuse’s development. It is extensively illustrated with photographs taken specifically for the book, as well as previously unpublished period photographs.

Michel Dumoulin is professor of contemporary history at the Université Catholique de Louvain. Jacques Vandenbroucke holds a Master’s degree in history, and wrote his thesis on quarry work before the era of mechanisation.