The roots of The New England Slate Company trace back to 1974. While collecting some hand-hewn beams from an old dairy barn for a construction project, Chuck Smid discovered a batch of salvaged roofing slate buried in weeds outside the barn. After researching the proper slate roofing techniques and realizing that most of these found slates were still sound, he decided to install them on the structure he was building - his own home. Recognizing an opportunity, Chuck began buying salvaged slate that he would sort for size and color and check for quality. Soon the fields adjacent to his rural Vermont home were filling with stacks of slate and customers from all over New England were calling to find matching slate for repairs and additions. Within several years the slate business had grown to become viable as a full time operation and Smid, Inc. was formed in 1980.

The growing business needed space, in the summer of 1980 Chuck built a new shop and office area on Burr Pond Road in Sudbury, Vermont. Salvaged Unfading Green roofing slates were installed on the roof with Unfading Purple incorporated in this background to create the date '1980'. The new shop space allowed for the production of "Vermont Cobble Slate" a flooring and veneer product made from broken pieces of salvaged roofing slate re-trimmed to rectangles. The company also produced specialty slates; hearts, ovals and other shapes were trimmed for sale to artisans for painting of welcome signs and other craft products. Roofing slate remained the core business though, as roofers familiar with the high quality slate and excellent customer service asked for quotes on new roofing slates and architects began to specify Smid, Inc. as a supplier. Soon Smid, Inc. was supplying both new and salvaged roofing slate and a standard question for most inquiries became, "do you want new or used slate?" The desire to reach out for customers beyond the Northeast led to discussions about marketing efforts including a possible name change to better describe the nature of the company. The New England Slate Company name was adopted around 1986.

As sales continued to grow, Chuck made the strategic decision to focus the company's efforts on supplying only new roofing slate and sold the salvage, specialty slate and cobble slate parts of the business. The new slate inventory expanded to more than fill the space occupied by the used slates as The New England Slate Company supplemented its Vermont sourced slate offerings with slate from two quarries in Canada. North Country Unfading Black from the Glendyne quarry in Quebec, and the Trinity Unfading Purple and Green slates from Hurley Slate Works in Newfoundland fit with company's culture of high quality.

In 2000 New England Slate moved to a leased site in Pittsford, VT that had direct access to major highways and much better facilities for loading and unloading trucks. This move proved only temporary, as by 2006 is became clear the company needed more office, shop and yard space.

In 2007 The New England Slate Company began construction of a new facility in Poultney, VT and moved in to the new quarters in July of 2008. The location is more central to the Vermont and New York quarries and provides the space and facilities for future growth. Efficiency of operations and efficiency of energy use were key components of the building design, and the project was recognized in 2009 with a Governor's Award for Environmental Excellence & Pollution Prevention.

The position of The New England Slate Company as distributor of high quality roofing slate was strengthened in 2009 with the addition of Penrhyn Purple to our product line up. Produced by Welsh//Slate (welshslate.com) in Wales and marketed as Heather Blue in the U.K. this prestigious slate has hundreds of years of quality and craftsmanship imbued in every piece.

Chuck is gradually passing the day-to-day business responsibilities to Clay Heald and Chris Smid. With young energy, world-class products and an efficient facility The New England Slate Company is well positioned to serve its growing customer base well into the future.