Since 1925, the Osmundsons have been quarrying limestone, rock and gravel in Mower County. In the late 1940s, the family started to crush rock for road building. J.O. Osmundson is the current spokesman for this family business of 20 employees.

"Fifty percent of the products we mine, we haul to where it is needed," J.O. Osmundson said. "We haul gravel for roads for the townships and farmers. We bid on the township roads. We move snow in the winter. The biggest thing we do is take care of the machinery we use."

Machinery in quarries and gravel pits is large. Bulldozers, scrapers, excavators, backhoes, back fillers and breakers are just a few of the large pieces of equipment. A breaker is a large machine that takes big rocks and breaks them down to six-inch rocks. American Testing out of Rochester tests the grade of the gravel each year. When Osmundsons are mining gravel, every 1,000 tons are tested for gradation. The state inspectors specify different sizes of rocks. When mining for gravel and limestone, the topsoil is saved and the gravel and stone is dug out from deep in the earth.

"The whole town of LeRoy is on rock. It's a sturdy place to build a town but hard to put water pipes in the ground," J.O. Osmundson said.

When J.O. Osmundson's uncles, Herb and Earl Osmundson, started quarrying 78 years ago, they were using draft horses. J. O. Osmundson's father, Art, joined the company after World War II. J.O. Osmundson's brother, Art, was part of the business until he retired.

"The area has been good to me. I have the Case Equipment business in Adams. We do parts and service work. I started in the business in high school. I went to college in Mankato and got my degree in business. My son, Nathan, is part of the business and he helps out with the implements. Two cousins, Scott and Mark are part of the business too," J.O. Osmundson said.

The Osmundsons fill a niche in their area and they don't usually have to advertise for work. Most of their jobs are acquired by word of mouth. Retention is high in that workers seldom leave. Working outdoors in a clean environment and mining the natural material of the earth is a job these workers want to keep.

"Sometimes we hire extra seasonal workers. We hire people we know or people who have worked on farms. Safety is our biggest concern in our work. The workers wear hard hats, ear protection, eye goggles and steel-toed boots," J.O. Osmundson said.

With Minnesota winters lasting so long, the workers have 10-hour work days during the summer months. Osmundsons operates a quarry in LeRoy as well as the one near Grand Meadow.

"The biggest changes we have seen in the business is that there are fewer farmers we do work for. Our equipment is heavier and the insurance has changed too. The best thing about this business is working with people and helping people out," J.O. Osmundson said.

His cousin, Mark Osmundson, checks out the quarry in Grand Meadow on this particular day. He loves his work and the natural environment of being outdoors. He was talking with a worker, Lyle Julson, an employee for 29 years, who was getting ready to pump water from the gravel pits. The water from the quarry is spring fed and it is pumped from the quarry into Bear Creek. There have been times the pits have filled with so much water after rains that they have had to shut them down until the water receded. The water pump has been submerged with water during these times. This doesn't ruin the pump; only the gearboxes can get full of mud.

The public is not allowed in the quarries and they have had trouble at times with joy riders on recreational vehicles. A quarry is a beautiful but dangerous place. The water is deep in parts and often explosives are used to bring materials to the earth's surface. Holes are drilled deep and filled with explosives.

"All this is done electrically. It looks really pretty at night when we use the explosives," Mark Osmundson said. "The safety record for the workers at Osmundsons Quarry is good."

Private homeowners can order gravel, crushed rock or limestone. They have hauled material as far as St. Cloud and into parts of Iowa.

Sheila Donnelly can be reached at 434-2233 or by e-mail at :mailto:newsroom@austindailyherald.com