09/01/1891 – Rutherglen Reformer – Sudden death in brickwork. Early on Monday morning James Rae,(62), tramp collier, well in the district died suddenly in the drying store at Messrs Wm Baird & Co brickworks Palacecraig where he was in habit of passing the night. For some months past, he had been weak in health. He had been in the Clarkston district for the past 30 years The cause of death appears to have been general debility.
07/02/1891 – Glasgow Herald – Yesterday a labourer named James Simond of no fixed residence sustained a fracture to his left thigh bone and other injuries by falling over at Palacecraig Brickworks, Near Calderbank. He was conveyed to Glasgow Royal Infirmary in the ambulance van.
11/02/1891 – Coatbridge Express – The man James Simond, who sustained serious injuries by falling off the top of a kiln at the Palacecraig Brickworks on Friday died in the Royal Infirmary from, it is believed, the exposure to which he was subjected for several hours combined with the injuries occasioned by the fall.
Below – 19/03/1892 – Airdrie and Coatbridge Advertiser – 42 tramps sent to prison while lodging in unoccupied kilns at Palacecraig and Faskine Brickworks along with their wives and children. They are described as ‘Tousie’ and ‘Unwashed’.
Below – 1897 – Palacecraig Brickworks.
Below – 1911 – Faskine Brickworks – Palacecraig Brickworks have gone by this time.
05/09/1919 – Kilsyth Chronicle – New Companies registered last week – Faskine and Palacecraig Brick and Coal (Limited). Capital £10,000 in £1 shares. Private Company. Subscribers John J McMurdo, solicitor, 10 Bank Street, Airdrie, and John Weir, brick manufacturer, Castlecary by Bonnybridge.
1920 – 21 – Castlecary Fireclay Co., Ltd., firebrick furnace block manufacturers, Castlecary, Palacecraig Colliery and Faskine Brickworks, Airdrie. Office, 45 Renfield street. Tel. Nos, 3406 Central and 12 Dullatur; telegrams, “ Weir, Castlecary, Glasgow.
06/01/1939 – Western Mail – General Refractories scheme of consolidation … In accordance with the policy of consolidation which is now in progress the board of the General Refractories Ltd announces that certain subsidiary companies are being placed into voluntary liquidation for the purposes of amalgamation … In addition, the following companies are being liquidated for the purpose of amalgamation with the Glenboig Union Fireclay Company Ltd:-Castlecary Firebrick Company, Ltd., Faskine and Palacecraig Bricks and Coal, Ltd., and George Turnbull and Co., Ltd. …
Found by Ian Suddaby near Ravenscraig, Motherwell. This example is not in my possession. Ian states – It’s a shame the markings on many of these relatively modern basic bricks are so faint. At least I can just read this one. Why is the C a bit smaller? SPINELLA MC So this was made by General Refractories…
Found on the site of the old Manuel Brickworks, Whitecross. Ian Suddaby states – A KROMAG brick was found last weekend and I thought this was an American import to Scotland. That was based on the Kromag name being registered to an American company, E. J. Lavino & Co. and a picture of a near…
Found by Ian Suddaby in the Bonnybridge area. This example is not in my possession. Dykehead Fire Clay Works, Bonnybridge, Falkirk. The GR’s refers to General Refractories which bought over the Dykehead Works. . . Below – It is not instantly seen but the motif in the circular stamp on the brick is as per…
A substantial collection of silica fire bricks from steel-making furnaces have now been recovered from a dump site to the rear of the Dalzell Iron and Steelworks, Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. All appear to predate the Ravenscraig Steelworks by around 50 years. Cartographic evidence shows that spoil from the Dalzell Iron & Steel Works and possibly…
Many thanks to Martyn Fretwell and David Cufley for their assistance with creating this page. Many fire bricks are stamped BCM alongside the manufacturer’s name. BCM – British Commercial Monomarks. Below – 10/07/1925 – The Times – Indexing humanity. Men may soon be like motorcars. Lost property solution. Latest in classification. Modern life is to…
Found by Ian Suddaby in Bonnybridge. This example is not in my possession. Dykehead Fire Clay Works, Bonnybridge, Falkirk. GR Dykehead – probably stands for General Refractories. (Note – SBH – A similar example found is stamped GR’s. Has the – ‘s – fallen off this stamp or is this a variation on a theme?)….
The following fire brick core samples were rescued by Joan Faithfull in 2001 when the Manuel Firebrick and Refractory Works, Whitecross closed down. They were generously donated to my collection by Joan’s husband, Monty Faithfull and her son, John Faithfull. Such core samples would be sent to the GR-Stein laboratories for tests and analysis. The…
Found in Fife. I believe this was manufactured by Charles Bramall who owned the Caledonian Brickworks, Larkhall c.1904 to his death 1921 – this site was previously known as the Larkhall Brickfields and by 1938 it was known as Birkenshaw Brickworks. Charles Bramall Ltd, a silica brick manufacturer also owned a brickworks in Sheffield manufacturing silica…
Canmore (Note – SBH – I am unable to pinpoint it on the OS Maps – I will try again!) Below – 1856 – Canmore suggests Kittleyknowe Tileworks were at the location of the red cross. 11/05/1881 – Greenock Advertiser – Bankruptcy – John Finnie Allan, farmer, Cardrona Mains and Kittleyknowe, Peebleshire. (Were the tileworks…
Canmore – Dykehead Fireclay Works. Source Falkirk Museum and Archives – George Turnbull and Company, Dykehead Brickworks, Bonnybridge. Established in 1839. Founder Miss Margaret Donald. The works never became profitable and she eventually sold them to marry and emigrated to Australia. The site was later taken over by George Turnbull & Co. The works stood…
