Welcome to The Stone Trust

Established in southern Vermont in 2010, The Stone Trust’s mission is to preserve and advance the art and craft of dry stone walling. We do this through an expanding program of educational events and outreach projects. The Stone Trust is a multifaceted resource engaged in preserving the natural use of plentiful stone in simple, gratifying ways.

The Stone Trust Center is the only facility in North America that provides year round educational and DSWA certification opportunities for all levels and abilities. The Stone Trust is a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Organization. It relies on contributions from people like you to keep its programs going. Help us continue to preserve and advance the art and craft of Dry Stone Walling!

Quick Links

• Looking for hands-on training to build dry stone walls? Click Upcoming Workshops
• Want to become a Certified Dry Stone Waller? Click Upcoming Certifications
• Looking for a contractor to build a wall? Click Certified Wallers
• Want to read up on the basics of dry stone walling? Click How to Build Walls
• Looking for amazing photos of dry stone walls and features? Click Photo Gallery
• Are you an Architect, Landscape Architect, Engineer or Designer looking for specifications for dry stone walls? Click Design Information

Support The Stone Trust

Your support makes our work possible. Please consider helping us preserve and advance the craft of dry stone walling by making a donation today. Thank you.

Meet Dan Morales-Walsh, Board Member

Posted November 25, 2020
Dan joined the board of The Stone Trust (TST) in January 2020. He has been working with stone since he was fourteen years old when he also began helping his father with his general construction business. Dan is a Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain (DSWA-GB)-certified Level 2 Intermediate waller and instructor. He is [...]


Workshops Added for Professionals, Certification Testers, and Walling Enthusiasts

Posted November 25, 2020
We appreciate the comments and queries we received after we opened 2021 workshops for registration. Thanks for helping us understand what many of you are looking for from us: opportunities to pursue Dry Stone Walling Association of Great Britain (DSWA-GB) certification along with training and support to accomplish it. Thank you for being patient as [...]


Master Class: Throughs

Posted November 19, 2020
A throughstone is, as its name suggests, a stone which completely traverses the width of a wall. Its function being to tie the two faces of the wall together and to distribute the weight of the wall above them more evenly to the wall below. In North Wales they are set flush with face of the wall. In other parts of the country they project through the face of the wall (usually from both faces, but occasionally from just one).



November Waller of the Month: Jamie Masefield

Posted November 19, 2020
JAMIE MASEFIELD (Vermont) is the owner of Masefield Dry Stone Masonry. “Dry stone masonry never seems to feel repetitious because every project is so different from the last one; the stone, the location, the clients, the needs of the site. Every project is another chance to get better. The international and historic nature of the craft provides an endless stream of inspiration.”


Dry Stone Walling Association of Australia Shares Their News!

Posted November 13, 2020
Bruce Munday, editor of The Flagstone, newsletter of the Dry Stone Wall Association of Australia, sends their September 2020 issue for us to share with you. It's an impressive tome! "Something for everyone," writes DSWAA President Laurie Atkins. Indeed! Here you can read about the varied stone constructions of 'the Dowie Boys' at Wallunga, the [...]


2021 Workshops Open for Registration

Posted November 13, 2020
The Stone Trust is pleased to open our 2021 workshops for registration. We are grateful to all of you who registered for and attended 2020 classes, and also to those of you who registered but were unable to attend. To transfer tuition from a 2020 workshop, please contact info@thestonetrust.org. In previous years, early and late […]



Don’t Miss Our Annual 2020 Member Newsletter!

Posted November 13, 2020
Just out, The Stone Trust's Autumn 2020 newsletter depicts the work of our professional members through stories and photos. We publish the newsletter as a member benefit. Here's what members are reading about: Bryce Hollingsworth connects to British tradition, as a he recounts what he learned while walling in Ireland with Fergus Packman. Joe Dinwiddie [...]


The 2020 Workshop Season Comes to a Close

Posted October 30, 2020
As you may recall, our workshop season came to a halt in the middle of March. With the patient goodwill of our supporters, we were able to start teaching again in July. Director of Education and Training, Brian Post, thought through how to revise our teaching infrastructure and curriculum to accommodate social distance. Instructors volunteered [...]


Meet Paul Peterson, Board Member

Posted October 29, 2020
In January, Paul generously offered to interview the twelve members of The Stone Trust board. He offers this profile of himself. Many thanks, Paul, for helping us understand the skills, experience, and commitments you and others bring to your work on the board! Paul joined the board of the Stone Trust in January 2020. His [...]


Master Class: Hearting

Posted October 22, 2020
The first principle with hearting is that you should aim to use one stone per gap/void. This is of course not always practical! This does not mean you shouldn’t aim for it and so if you can’t use one stone then use as few as possible. This in turn means if you have a big hole, use a big stone first, or if you are filling a gap on the inside edges of two face stones find a stone the right shape to fit. The fewer the pieces of hearting the fewer the potential moving parts during settlement.