BRICK MAKING IN CLARENDON

Author:
Jo-Anne Brownlee (Text and photo reprinted with permission from A Self-Guided Historical Tour of Clarendon, 2005)

Image removed.Easy access to clay and limestone in Clarendon made bricks and mortar a logical venture. Clarendon lime kilns were built as early as the 1860s and many bricks were made by hand. In 1888, while there were a few brick industries already in operation in Shawville, two additional brickyards were set up in Clarendon. William Barber established a yard at Clarendon Front, while Ralph Hodgins set up on the west side of the Heath Road, south of Highway 148. This brickyard was later taken over by his son David T. Hodgins, but it eventually closed in 1942.

The brick industry helped see the construction of a number of beautiful Victorian houses in both Shawville and Clarendon.