Bricks

[Bullwinkle]

     The tile being made at Peru was more likely flue tiles or sewer tile or both. Not much call for roof tile here. Pittsburg made tiles too, maybe still. Coffeyville pavers are some of the best made and were used in the old 54 Highway that came out Central from Wichita to Andover and south to Kellogg then east. There is/was a huge pile of them somewhere around Augusta.

    I have some pavers from Murfreesboro and other eastern places, as well as some from the old railroad depot in Howard.

[flintauqua]

List of and pictures of Kansas made bricks (50 in total) in one gentleman's 700+ brick collection:

http://bricknames.com/brick/search?c=state&q=KS

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273 pictures of Kansas made bricks:

http://www.ibcabrick.com/50states/kansasbrick.htm

[flintauqua]

It appears the Peru plant was making roofing tile when it closed in the 1930's.  It is mentioned in a document from 2005 relating to Ludowici seeking to terminate a 1929 anti-trust decree.

"C. The Current Clay Roofing-Tile Market

The clay roofing-tile market has changed dramatically since the Decree was entered.(3) First, Ludowici-Celadon closed its Peru, Kansas facility in the 1930s and liquidated its Coffeyville, Kansas facility in 1958. Ludowici currently owns and operates only one roofing-tile plant--its facility located in New Lexington, Ohio. "

In Footnotes - "3. At the time the Decree was entered, Ludowici-Celadon owned and operated at least three roofing-tile plants, located in Coffeyville and Peru, Kansas and New Lexington, Ohio. Ludowici-Celadon's Alfred, New York and Chicago Heights, Illinois plants were destroyed by fire in 1909. Its Georgia facility was closed in 1914. It is unclear whether Ludowici continued to own or operate its Ottawa, Illinois plant in 1929; it appears not to have operated that facility since, at least, the early 1930s. "

Full document here:  http://www.justice.gov/atr/cases/f212800/212846.htm

[Bullwinkle]

       I was speculating they weren't making roof tile since the local demand would not have supported it. Obviuosly they had other markets. The framing on a house has to be doubled to support the weight of tile or slate. There are houses with either one in Wichita that I know of. Quite expensive today.

      I also got the city wrong on one of my pavers, it is from Murphysboro, wherever that is. It has Egyptian stamped in the middle. Also have one from Chanute. I'm relatively certain Pittsburg made flue tile and large storm sewer tile. The debris around the Peru plant is hard to identify. Perhaps they made several products. You can see piles of shards there that were broken , probably defects. Some are much larger than a roof tile.

[flintauqua]

That would be Murphysboro, IL.

http://bricknames.com/brick/search?c=city&q=Murphysboro

For info on the brick and tile history of Pittsburgh, please see the section titled "Clay Products Industries", about two-thirds of the way down the following page:

http://www.kshs.org/p/kansas-historical-quarterly-some-phases-of-the-industrial-history-of-pittsburg/12545

Also a post-card of the sewer pipe and tile plant:

http://www.cardcow.com/175438/sewer-pipe-tile-plant-pittsburg-kansas/

[flintauqua]

Who knew Elk City once had a brick plant?  "The brick plant in town was in operation in 1882 and closed in 1911." according to:

http://www.skyways.org/towns/ElkCity/elkcityhighschoolhistory.html

Also the previous mentioned link to 273 Kansas bricks has one identified as Elk City:

http://www.ibcabrick.com/images/bricks/Kansas_Kentucky/KanElkCityFish.jpg

[W. Gray]

Anyone have any idea where the bricks used to pave Wabash and Randolph streets in Howard came from?

[frawin]

I have several pictures of Howard Main Street around 1906-1908, and it looks like Main Street was bricked then. Some of the buildings were definitely bricked in 1906-1908.

[W. Gray]

One would think that they would have to have come from a kiln that was reasonably close.

[Wilma]

Wasn't there a brick factory in Moline about that time or am I remembering something wrong?