Oolitic also has a statue to no longer famous comic strip character Joe Palooka. They’re very proud of it.
I come from Bloomington, which is just north of Oolitic. It’s well-known where the limestone from the Empire State Building came from if you live there, but I never saw the actual quarry before.
As far as I know, yes. But there are a ton of other limestone quarries in the area. As for what is done with the ponds, I’ll let the movie Breaking Away (filmed in Bloomington) let you know about that:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYog3Id5EoU
That specific quarry has been filled in, sadly. I’m told there is a lot more security around them these days too. I can’t 100% blame them for that, it’s not like it’s totally safe to swim there. I’m told you can do some good fishing in them as well, but that was never my thing.
I’m not sure I’ve seen that movie but I do remember one where some kids (or one kid?) rode bikes into an old quarry. I grew up near old quarries in southern Ohio and heard the same things you mentioned, and likewise never did those things. My Aunt worked at IU in the 60s, I am going to ask if she ever heard about this if she can remember. She was a librarian there.
You should ask her if she remembers the library being set on fire in the middle of an anti-Vietnam War demonstration. The students got the blame until it turned out it was a disgruntled ex-employee (I think it was a custodian). My dad was a professor there and told me about it. Apparently one of his colleagues actually started pointing a finger at the students and yelling, “YOU DID THIS!” at them.
What?! That’s incredible. I think I can say with confidence it wasn’t my Aunt 😬 Incredible story, I’m going to ask.