John Nelson was a Scot who operated the brickworks at Benhar, Otago, New Zealand.
In 1864, Nelson opened the Benhar Coal Company.
He produced brick etc on the site from 1876 until 1892 – 1893 when the business was sold to Peter McSkimming, a fellow Scot.
Peter McSkimming and his son Peter McNish McSkimming, worked for John Nelson at his recently established pipeworks at Benhar, then produced clay pipes on a contract basis. They subsequently leased the Benhar pipe factory from John Nelson with the £150–£200 they had between them. Assisted by a loan from a friend, they eventually bought out the business completely in 1892 or 1893 and established it as P. McSkimming and Son. The factory included coal-pits, pipe-works and brickworks, and eventually a clay pit.
Dundee Brick and Tile Company, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. 04/11/1899 – St. Andrews Citizen – … Coincidently, with the battle of Dundee, and the sad death of General Symons there, it is interesting to note that the founder of Dundee is a Scotsman. This gentleman – Mr Peter Smith – is a native of Forfarshire, being…
13/11/1840 – John O’ Groat Journal – A very interesting letter from Sydney, under date 6th June last, reached a few days ago. Its writer is a gentleman belonging to Caithness-shire, for some time settled in Sydney. As the information it contains can be relied on, we present our readers with the following extract –…
Found in Riverton, New Zealand. The photograph and information were forwarded by Cedric Trounson. Cedric states – “Riverton is the second oldest European settlement in NZ and this brick was found where an early immigrant house had been built from maybe the 1840s. This was an early sealing and whaling settlement” . . . Below …
Established in 1899, Alexandra Brickworks was the first brickyard in Singapore to produce bricks using modern machinery on a large scale. Iconic public buildings like the former National Library at Stamford Road, Tiong Bahru SIT flats and Gillman Barracks were built with these bricks. Below – “This 1956 photograph of Alexandra Brickworks show 3 tall…
Found by Victoria Grouden on an archaeological tannery site in Wellington, New Zealand that was in use mid-1860s to the mid-20th century. Lower Tyers Rd Archaeological Monitoring Report This is also a variation on my own Stein A example as the ‘A’ looks much smaller. Stein, Castlecary Fireclay Works, Castlecary, Stirlingshire. Stein, Manuel Firebrick and…
Details of the following bricks have been forwarded by Eion Ross who lives in Oamaru, South Island, New Zealand. Eion states ” These bricks were found lying around the town, and I think they were from the local retorts which were demolished in the 1980s. The original gas works were built in the 1870s and rebuilt nearby 1939-40. I…
Canmore 16/01/1844 – Ayr Observer – The tilework at Shawneuk near Catrine will be sold by private bargain, or let for the season of 1844. Application for particulars may be made to the Trustees on James Nimmo’s Estate; or to Strathdee and Meikle, writers in Mauchline, on or before 10th February next. 13th January 1841….
The following Starworks bricks have been found by Angel Trendafilov. Angel is an archaeologist with Underground Overground Archaeology an archaeological consultancy based in Christchurch, New Zealand. Both bricks were found in Christchurch, New Zealand. Below – Found July 2017. A partial Starworks brick. It was just a single find in a small residential section in…
Robert Selkirk, I was born at Fifeshire, Scotland, and emigrated to Australia with his young family in 1854, including the 13-year old Robert Junior In 1883, Robert Selkirk II, a Scottish immigrant, identified the need for materials in the post gold rush building boom in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. He began making bricks by hand and…
Scottish immigrant James Glover is credited with initiating the local (Bolivar, Westmoreland Co.) firebrick business. He reportedly worked in the Mt. Savage, MD, clay mines before discovering the deposits at Bolivar in 1842. Township tax assessors recorded a brickyard in Fairfield Township in 1846 when Baxter, Glover, Harley and Company were taxed for 250 acres,…
