Claybank Brick Plant
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The Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site, located near Claybank, Saskatchewan at the foot of the Dirt Hills in the RM of Elmsthorpe No. 100, was an operational brick manufacturing plant from 1914 to 1989. Bricks manufactured at the site have been used to construct prominent Canadian buildings such as the Bessborough Hotel in
Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...
and the Chateau Frontenac in
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. The site was designated as a National Historic Site in 1996 and remains one of Canada's greatest examples of early twentieth century industrialism.


History

The land around the Claybank Brick Plant National historic Site has been inhabited by various
First Nations First nations are indigenous settlers or bands. First Nations, first nations, or first peoples may also refer to: Indigenous groups *List of Indigenous peoples *First Nations in Canada, Indigenous peoples of Canada who are neither Inuit nor Mé ...
groups for thousands of years. While they undoubtedly hunted and gathered in the area, it is also very probable that they utilized the rich clay deposits of the area to produce
clay pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other raw materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. The place where such wares are made by a ''potter'' is al ...
and other tools. Despite a long history of human occupation in the area, it was not until fairly recently, the late nineteen century, that recent European settlers in the area discovered the valuable clay deposits, recognized their economic importance and begun to utilize them on an industrial scale. * 1886 - Discovery: Thomas McWilliams, a homesteader from the Moose Jaw River area, was the first to recognize the economic potential of the clay found in hills of this area. He discovered the clay one day in 1886 while out looking for lost cattle and picking Saskatoon berries. Thomas travelled to
Moose Jaw Moose Jaw is the List of cities in Saskatchewan, fourth largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada. Lying on the Moose Jaw River in the south-central part of the province, it is situated on the Trans-Canada Highway, west of Regina, Saskatchewan, Re ...
to the land titles office to lay claim to the clay-rick land. He later moved his family to the new homestead. Near the same time, he sought permission from the federal government to mine the refractory clay on his land. This is the first official record of the Claybank clay deposits. Over the next, almost twenty years, Thomas minded and sold clay to the Wellington White brick plant in Moose Jaw. * 1904 - Partnership: In 1904, Thomas entered into a formal partnership with the Moose Jaw Fire Brick and Pottery Company. As a result, the company acquired Mr. McWilliam's original homestead plus other nearby clay deposits. Despite the investment and exceptional quality of the clay, a lack of infrastructure and the distance to consumer markets, made the endeavour unprofitable as Moose Jaw was over 50 km away and the clay had to be hauled by horse and wagon. That, however, was about to change. * 1910 - Development: In 1910, the
Canadian Northern Railway The Canadian Northern Railway (CNoR) was a historic Canada, Canadian transcontinental railway. At its 1923 merger into the Canadian National Railway , the CNoR owned a main line between Quebec City and Vancouver via Ottawa, Winnipeg, and Edmonto ...
came to the area and overnight, the problem of lack of access to markets was resolved. A spur line from the main rail line at Claybank was constructed and plans were immediately made to build a new coal-fired brick plant. In 1912, the Moose Jaw Fire Brick and Pottery Company bought out Tom McWilliams' remaining shares and transformed itself into Saskatchewan Clay Products. The new plant, begun in 1912, was completed in 1914 however, because of the economic difficulties related to
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, it was forced to cease operations until 1916. * 1916 - Re-organization: The Dominion Fire Brick and Clay Products Ltd. was the result of a company re-organization in 1916. The plant was immediately pressed back into service. The newly re-branded and re-energized company expanded its product line to include face brick and specialized fire brick. These new innovate products helped the company survive the immediate post-war years as the expansion of railways and industrialization following the war, meant high demand for the company's products. The development of the specialized product line also helped the company survive the Great Depression, to such an extent that by 1938 the Claybank brick plant was the busiest in the province. During World War II demand for the company's specialized refractory bricks, used in
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warships, ensured its prosperity, while face brick production also continued. In post-war years the Claybank brick plant continued to prosper and by 1950 it was the largest clay plant in Saskatchewan. 1954 - Foreign Control: In 1954 the plant was bought by the Alberta-based, Redcliffe Pressed Brick, who renamed the company, Dominion Fire Brick and Clay Products. The following year, controlling interest in the plant was transferred to A.P. Green Fire Brick Company of
Mexico, Missouri Mexico, formerly known as New Mexico, is a city in and the county seat of Audrain County, Missouri, United States. It is home to the Missouri Military Academy and annually hosts the Miss Missouri Pageant. The city's population was 11,469 at the ...
. The company, one of North America's leading producers of refractory products, modernized the plant's operations, including converting six of the ten coal-fired
kiln A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or Chemical Changes, chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects m ...
s to natural gas. Despite these improvements the plant began experiencing financial difficulties in the mid-1950s as a result of the decline in the demand for locomotive brick as railways converted to
diesel locomotive A diesel locomotive is a type of railway locomotive in which the prime mover (locomotive), power source is a diesel engine. Several types of diesel locomotives have been developed, differing mainly in the means by which mechanical power is con ...
s. In the 1960s, the company also discontinued production of its famous face brick. While the conversion of the kilns to natural gas offered several advantages, it had proved devastating to the demand for Claybank face brick as the coal-fired kilns had given the brick its colour - colour that was lost with natural gas. In 1962 A.P. Green gained complete control of the Claybank brick plant but the company continued to operate under the name Dominion Fire Brick and Clay Products until December 31, 1970. * 1971 - Decline: In 1971 the plant became a subsidiary of A.P. Green Refractories (Canada) Ltd. This limited the plant's prospects and appears to have hastened the plant's financial decline. Dwindling markets for refractory bricks, changing technology, the plant's outmoded equipment and corporate downsizing all contributed to the closure of the 75 year old plant in 1989. * 1989 - Heritage Property: With the closure of the plant in June 1989 the
Government of Saskatchewan The Government of Saskatchewan () is the provincial government of the province of Saskatchewan. Its powers and structure are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867. In modern Canadian use, the term "government" refers broadly to the cabinet of th ...
decided to designate the plant as a provincial heritage site. A.P. Green donated the brick plant, machinery and equipment to the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation in 1992. In 1994 the plant was declared a national historic site and in 1998 the Claybank Brick Plant was officially designated as Provincial Heritage Property. The Claybank Brick plant has been conserved as a part of Saskatchewan's industrial heritage with its official announcement 29 June 1997 as a National Historic Site of Canada by
Minister of Canadian Heritage The Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture is the minister of the Crown who heads Department of Canadian Heritage, Canadian Heritage, the department of the Government of Canada responsible for Canadian culture, culture, Media in Canada, medi ...
Sheila Copps Sheila Maureen Copps (born November 27, 1952) is a former Canadian politician who also served as the sixth deputy prime minister of Canada from November 4, 1993, to April 30, 1996, and June 19, 1996, to June 11, 1997. Her father, Victor Copps, ...
. $2 million for the conservation and presentation of the Brick Plant by Claybank was contributed jointly between Federal and Provincial Government funding departments. In 2015, the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation partnered with the Prince's Charities Canada and the Prince's Regeneration Trust, philanthropic organizations established by the
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, to undertake a review of the operations at Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site.


Products

Face Brick: The Claybank Plant produced a distinctive brick that was used in many prominent buildings across Canada including the
Château Frontenac The Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, commonly referred to as the Château Frontenac (), is a historic hotel in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The hotel is situated in Old Quebec, within the historic district's Upper Town, on the southern side of Pl ...
in
Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...
, the
Delta Bessborough The Delta Hotels Bessborough, formerly and commonly known as the Bessborough (), is a historic hotel in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. The hotel is within the Central Business District, Saskatoon, Central Business District, a commercial distric ...
in
Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...
, the Gravelbourg Cathedral, in Gravelbourg and many courthouses and public buildings throughout Saskatchewan. The face brick  was produced until the 1960s before being discontinued. Fire Brick: Claybank is home to deposits of a rare form of refractory clay that has exceptional heat resistant qualities. The rare fire brick produced from this clay, since the 1920s, have been used in fireplaces and furnaces as well as having lined the fire boxes of
CN Rail The Canadian National Railway Company () is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue an ...
and CP Rail locomotives and the boilers Corvette warships produced during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. So good was the fire brick produced at Claybank at insulating against extreme heat that it was used in the construction of the
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rocket launch pads at
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,
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
.


Geology

Nestled in the Dirt Hills of southern Saskatchewan, the Claybank Brick Plant used clay from the nearby Massold Clay Canyons. The Dirt Hills, the result of Pleistocene glacial action, overlay the Whitemud Formation. The Whitemud geological formation, formed in the
late Cretaceous The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the more recent of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''cre ...
period and found throughout the plains of southern Saskatchewan, south-eastern and south-central
Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...
, is a source of high-quality
refractory In materials science, a refractory (or refractory material) is a material that is resistant to decomposition by heat or chemical attack and that retains its strength and rigidity at high temperatures. They are inorganic, non-metallic compound ...
clay; white kaolinitic and bentonitic clays. Claybank itself is home to two main types of clay; white and grey in colour which possess different properties, valuable in producing bricks for various purposes.


Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site Activities

The plant is currently open for tours seven days per week from June to the end of August. Self-guided tours operate all day and special guided tours are available daily at 10:30 and 1:30. In addition, school and group tours are available upon request. The Bunkhouse Café and Gift Shop are located in the interpretive centre where fresh, homemade food and baking can be found, in addition to Saskatchewan souvenirs and local crafts. The Claybank Brick Plant Annual Heritage Event takes place the last Sunday of June. Past events: In 2009 and 2010, the plant was home to the Canada's largest
Airsoft Airsoft, also known as survival game () in Japan where it was popular, is a team sport, team-based shooting sport, shooting game in which participants eliminate opposing players out of play by shooting them with airsoft pellets, spherical plast ...
event, dubbed Operation: Mason Relic, and will host the event again in 2011. Massold Clay Canyon 3 km Colour Run was held in June o
2018


Massold Clay Canyons

The Massold Clay Canyons are a 256-acre historic and wildlife area adjacent to the Claybank Brick Plant. The canyons consist of historic clay bits and nature wildlife areas. In 2001, the Claybank Brick Plant and Historical Society bought the land from Saskatchewan Environment and Resource Management. The ground lays untouched by the farmer's plough and as such, has remained virtually unchanged since the last ice age. There are many plants indigenous to the area and the hills are rich in local prairie wildlife. Hiking is available through the interpretive centre at the Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site.


Gallery

Images from around the Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site and the Massold Clay Canyons near Claybank, Saskatchewan. File:Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site Massold Clay Canyons Yellow Summer Flowers.jpeg, Massold Clay Canyons File:Claybank Brick Plant Saskatchewan.jpg, Looking west from the bunkhouse File:Claybank Brick Plant (1269078497).jpg, Closeup of the plant's roof line File:Claybank Brick Plant wheelbarrow.jpg, Wheelbarrow for bricks File:Claybank Brick Plant brick press.jpg, Brick press and un-fired bricks File:196 365 2018 - Inside the Brick Kiln at the Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site - Claybank, Saskatchewan - https claybankbrick.ca (42535126875).jpg, View from inside a brick
kiln A kiln is a thermally insulated chamber, a type of oven, that produces temperatures sufficient to complete some process, such as hardening, drying, or Chemical Changes, chemical changes. Kilns have been used for millennia to turn objects m ...
File:Claybank Brick Plant line shaft in machine shop.jpg, Power system File:Claybank Kiln Interior.jpg, Inside a kiln File:Claybank Kiln exterior.jpg, alt=Each kiln held 300,000 bricks and was loaded and unloaded by hand. Initially kilns were fueled by coal, but were converted to gas in the 1960s. Each batch took a week to load, a week to fire, and a week to cool., Exterior of a down-draft kiln


Nearby Attractions

The Claybank Brick Plant National Historic Site is located in the RM of Elmsthorpe No.100 near the communities of Claybank, Avonlea, Briercrest, and Truax, Saskatchewan. Nearby tourist attractions include; * Dunnet Regional Park
Long Creek Golf CourseBriercrest MuseumAvonlea Heritage Museum
*First Nations ceremonial sites * Avonlea Badlands


See also

* List of National Historic Sites of Canada in Saskatchewan * List of historic places in rural municipalities of Saskatchewan


References


External links

*
Claybank Brick Plant Historical Society
- official site
Claybank Brick Plant Commemorated as National Historic SiteVirtual Museum of Canada - VMC Map - Claybank Brick Plant National ...A Little Brick Plant in the Middle of Nowhere
Virtual Museum
Two historic sites designed as province celebrates heritage day
Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan {{Authority control Brickworks Elmsthorpe No. 100, Saskatchewan National Historic Sites in Saskatchewan Museums in Saskatchewan Industry museums in Canada History museums in Saskatchewan History museums in Canada Industrial buildings in Canada Industrial buildings completed in 1914 Tourist attractions in Saskatchewan Historic buildings and structures in Saskatchewan 1914 establishments in Saskatchewan