Gartcraig brick found in Australia | Scotland's Brick and Tile Manufacturing Industry
I get my kicks out of bricks!
Home / Scottish bricks overseas / Gartcraig brick found in Australia

Gartcraig brick found in Australia

Found by Allan Mitchell and recovered from an old copper mine chimney about 250km from Darwin, Australia.

Allan states:- The site is known as the Daly River Copper Mine Massacre, where, in 1884, about 5 white miners were murdered by Aboriginals. The reprisals or punitive expeditions probably resulted in the death of around 100 Aboriginals.

The mine opened and closed over the next 30 years and a kiln was constructed around 1900, with these bricks, which I believe had already been used in a clay works in Darwin before being moved to the mine site.
In 1942, Darwin was bombed many times by the Japanese and whilst the mine was abandoned, the military decided to flatten it as it was believed the Japanese could use it for navigation.
Some of the bricks were then moved about 100km to a US airfield called Fenton and used there.  I need to get back there to see if I can find evidence of that.

Note the thumbprint to the bottom left.

Below – ‘Gartcraig’ – Gartcraig, By Millerston, Glasgow.

Tagged with: , , ,

Similar articles

  • Gilmour & Co Kilmarnock brick found in the USA
    — 23/04/2025

    Found by Daniel den Hollander and Peter Greendyk. Peter states – On a recent field trip to an old iron furnace site, Split Rock Furnaces, in Boonton Township, New Jersey, Morris County, USA, a student spotted the remnants of a Gilmour and Kilmarnock brick near the base of the furnace. I could find none other…

  • Calder British Made brick found in Argentina
    — 21/03/2025

    Found by Franco Andrés at Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina. Franco states – I’m a mechanical engineer from Argentina. I was looking for information about this brick and found your website. I’m currently working at an old technical school. The building has a boiler room, built between 1934 and 1937. One of my coworkers found some of…

  • Gartcosh brick found in Sri Lanka
    — 11/02/2025

    This brick was photographed by Siobhan Ratchford at the The Queens Hotel, Kandy, Sri Lanka. Gartcosh Fireclay Works, Gartcosh, Glasgow. . . . .

  • Thistle brick found in Canada
    — 23/01/2025

    Found by Renee-Gabrielle Boucher in Edmundston, New Brunswick, Canada. Stein, Castlecary Fireclay Works, Castlecary, Stirlingshire. Stein, Manuel Firebrick and Refractory Works, Whitecross, Stirlingshire. Stein & Co, Anchor Brickworks, Denny, Stirlingshire. Milnquarter Fireclay & Gannister Works, Bonnybridge, Stirlingshire. .  

  • Scottish bricks found in Australia
    — 18/01/2025

    The following Scottish bricks were part of a collection owned by Ian Sneddon, New South Wales, Australia. They were all found at various unknown locations in Australia. . . . . Below – Caledonia – Caledonia Fireclay works, Paisley, Renfrewshire. Below – Gartcraig – Gartcraig Fire Clay Works, By Millerston, Glasgow. Below – Inverkeithing F &…

  • Glenboig A brick found in the Philippines
    — 13/01/2025

    Thank you to Razec Egroj for sending the photo. Glenboig Union Fireclay Company, Glenboig, Lanarkshire. Alternative brickworks include: Glenboig Star Fireclay Works, Glenboig, Lanarkshire. Glenboig Fireclay Works, (Old Works) Glenboig, Lanarkshire .

  • Cumbernauld brick found in Australia
    — 13/01/2025

    This brick is in the possession of Kent Murray and a label attached to it states ‘The Adolphus William Copper Mine 1870 – 1879? It is a fireclay circle brick and shows some lovely ‘kiss marks’. Cumbernauld Fireclay Works, Cumbernauld, Lanarkshire. . . .    

  • Thistle and Nettle bricks found in Ukraine
    — 12/01/2025

    Found by Alexey Oleksii on the site of an old sugar refinery in Ukraine. Sumy Refinery. Former Krasnozvezdensky Refinery, former Pavlovsky Refinery. It was built by the famous sugar manufacturer Ivan Kharitonenko in 1869 and named Pavlovsky in honor of his son Pavel. In Soviet times, it was renamed Krasnozvezdinsky (KRZ) and until the collapse…