Since 1912, the skyline south of Rogers City has been dominated by the buildings, machinery, and storage piles of the Calcite Plant, the world's largest limestone quarry operation. Founded by New York investment banker William F. White and his Michigan Limestone & Chemical Co., the operation began with the purchase of 5,000 acres of land south of Rogers City. During construction of the plant and its early years of operation, Carl D. Bradley served first as general manager of the company and later as its president. Although the plant was built primarily to provide the high quality limestone needed in the manufacture of steel, Bradley developed many new markets for Calcite limestone in the agricultural and cement industries. By his death in 1928, he was often referred to as the "Limestone King." The company experienced great success due largely to the extraordinary quality of its stone, its ability to ship the stone to customers around the lakes by low-cost water transportation, and its exceptional management. In 1920, the quarry and its fleet of self-unloading freighters were purchased by U.S. Steel. Today, the Calcite Plant is owned by Carmeuse Lime & Stone, a leading global producer of limestone. The Calcite quarry is approximately 5 miles long, 2 miles wide, and up to 150 feet deep. Since 1912, the plant has produced and shipped more than 878,000,000 tons of limestone, and reserves of stone are expected to last another 50-75 years.