The Milwaukee Falls Lime Company incorporated in 1890, and assumed and expanded operations at the Grafton quarry that had begun in 1845.

Between 1890 and 1893, the company constructed five wood-burning lime kilns near the quarry to produce quicklime from the dolomite of the Racine formation found just beneath the top soil along the west bank of the Milwaukee River.

[2][3] By 1900, Wisconsin ranked third nationally in lime production[2] and the company played a major role in the village's economy.

[2] In later years, the Tews Lime and Cement Company of Milwaukee purchased the site and managed operations.

[4] The northernmost pit was used as an incinerator and landfill in the decades following the quarry's closure, which led to some groundwater contamination.