Brick – A brief History

Often referred to as one of the world’s oldest professions, brick making is estimated to date back to early Mesopotamia, possibly as far as 10,000 years ago. Clay from deposits around the Tigris and Euphrates rivers was mixed with straw, shaped into brick units and sun dried.

Around this time, people of the area began an agricultural revolution. They evolved from their origins as hunters and gatherers, and began domesticating animals and raising food crops. They traded their reed huts for homes built from mud-brick and built villages where they lived and tended their crops.

Around 1792 BC, a man by the name of Hammurabi was the ruler of Babylon. In a short period of time, he conquered and unified the whole of Mesopotamia. With him came the first code of law and ultimately he is credited as being the architect of civilization’s first building code.

In Sumeria, offerings of food and drink were presented to "The Bone God," who was rep­resented in their ritual by the first brick. The Romans made use of fired bricks, and the Roman legions, which operated mobile kilns, made bricks for use in many parts of the empire. The Roman bricks often had stamps with the mark of the legion that supervised its production.

Through time, brick’s popularity as a building material grew as it demonstrated the ability to withstand the harsh elements of nature and fire. As the use of brick flourished, the practice of sun drying was replaced with kiln drying and eventually kiln firing. From its humble beginnings, brick making has evolved into a thriving industry with state-of-the-art brick making equipment and kilning.

Today, brick is manufactured in almost every color and can be made in a myriad of shapes and sizes from brick pavers, load bearing and decorative full-bed brick veneer to adhered thin brick. In addition, many accessory shapes are made for specific building situations.

Throughout history, brick “the original green building product” has withstood the test of time more than any other building material. And unlike concrete, it never faded! You can use brick with confidence for your next project because today’s brick is better than ever!

We hope you enjoy our educational video tour as seen by our Brio Train, of the Higgins’ Brick-making operation. Please click on the link and take the tour!