The 17th & 18th Century Brick Maker's Industry in Charlestown and Medford, Massachusetts

The brick industry in the Boston area thrived before the American Revolution - there were major industries in Medford, Massachusetts and Charlestown, Massachusetts. These were also likely the major suppliers for the Boston area during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. 

Brick makers likely came before potters (although, I can not be positive of that statement) - but, bricks were needed to build a proper kiln. It is not known where the initial bricks came from when Philip Drinker (d. 1647) built what is referred to today as Massachusetts first potter's kiln in Charlestown, circa 1635; however, the bricks may have been produced locally or imported from England. 

Next door to Drinker, lived John Smith and his family, who were also immigrants from England. The Smiths made a living working as shipwrights on Charlestown’s waterfront. The Smith family site is among the archaeological collections, which are kept at Boston's Archaeology Department in West Roxbury, Massachusetts today. The site was excavated by archaeologists in the 1980s as part of the archaeology conducted in Charlestown before Boston's Big Dig Project broke ground. 

Seventeenth century red earthenware kiln bricks were uncovered at the Smith Site; however, most of the bricks were labeled as 'limestone'. Drinker’s kiln is believed to have been located next door to the Smiths, and I believe that this waste can be tied to the Drinker family. This type of proof has never been seen from the Drinker Pottery before; whereas, this company's production has only previously been found in books.

The following examples of kiln bricks were recovered within a circa 1681-1707 archaeological context from the Smith Site. These artifacts were used as landfill when a foundation was covered on the Smith property in the late 1600s. The debris that was used to fill the foundation was likely taken from the remote area. There was a lot of kiln waste found within this context. The only real explanation that I have been able to determine for this waste inside this context is that it came from the Drinker Pottery. It may have come from Philip Drinker or his son, Edward Drinker, but they both ran consecutive potter's businesses on the same property in the 1600s.

17th Century Kiln Waste Recovered in Charlestown

 17h Century Kiln Bricks Recovered on the Smith Site in Charlestown, Mass.

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Recovered in a Circa 1681-1707 Archaeological Context

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

 17h Century Kiln Bricks Recovered on the Smith Site in Charlestown, Mass.

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Recovered in a Circa 1681-1707 Archaeological Context

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

17h Century Kiln Brick Recovered on the Smith Site in Charlestown, Mass.

Probably Related to the Drinker Pottery

Recovered in a Circa 1681-1707 Archaeological Context

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

The manufacture of bricks was needed for the construction of homes and infrastructure in the Boston area in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. There were many names associated with the early brick industry in coastal Massachusetts - Thomas Eames, Joseph Mirrible and Joseph Squire established the industry in Medford in the seventeenth century; whereas, the one-hundred year period between 1650 and 1750 was likely the most prominent in Medford’s industry. The industry supplied much of Boston and the area’s local settlements. Bricks may have even been exported elsewhere in New England. 

The brickyards were abundant in Charlestown and Medford, which was a similar establishment as was the circa 1635-1775 potter's industry in Charlestown. The names Brooks, Shed, Bradshaw, Blanchard, Adams, Casey and Tufts were all associated with this early industry. But the Tufts family’s contribution created a foundation that many may not realize today.

The Tufts family ancestry can be traced back to Peter Tufts from Essex, England in the early seventeenth century. He came to Massachusetts about the same time as did Philip Drinker, when he landed in Charlestown in 1638. Peter settled in a section of Charlestown that would eventually become Malden in 1649. Philip Drinker and Peter Tufts likely knew each other - and, Philip may have even purchased bricks from Tufts for his kiln. The same statement may even be said for the Kettle Pottery in Charlestown in the seventeenth century; although, Peter Tufts died in 1700.

Two of Peter's grandsons also joined the brick making industry in Charlestown; Nathan Tufts was born in 1724 and Daniel Tufts was born in 1757. They both eventually ran backyards, where their company's may have also helped supply the bricks for some of the local red earthenware potter's kilns in Charlestown. The Tufts family was also similar to the Parker family in Charlestown; wheras, the Tufts were also viewed as a prominent family. Daniel Tufts was also a member of the Harvard Utilitarian Society, as well as an important figure at his church.


18th Century Kiln Bricks Recovered in Charlestown

Kiln Bricks from the Parker Pottery in Charlestown, Mass.

Presumably, These Bricks were Produced by a Local Manufacturer

Circa 1714-1755

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

Kiln Bricks from the Parker Pottery in Charlestown, Mass.

Presumably, These Bricks were Produced by a Local Manufacturer

Circa 1714-1755

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Archaeology Department - West Roxbury, Mass.

According to Massachusetts author, Lura Woodside Watkins (Early New England Potters and Their Wares), "The Tufts family were not only brickmakers. (Another grandson of Peter Tufts) James Tufts and his son also carried on a pottery business in Medford as well for many years before the American Revolution."

Another family member, Charles Tufts born in 1781 was a large land owner in Medford, where he was also responsible for donating a piece of property in 1852 that helped establish the foundation for Tufts University. Ultimately, Tufts University was named after a family of brick makers and potters.

According to Tufts University, "Charles Tufts donated the land for the campus on Walnut Hill, the highest point in Medford, saying that he wanted to 'set a light on the hill.'"

To my knowledge: there are no known company ledgers or receipts that exist today, which actually identify where the bricks made by the Tufts family were used. However, it is assumed that most were manufactured for local use. 

The clay source that was used by the brick makers was also the same clay source that was used by Charlestown's red earthenware potters, which was harvested from locations around the Mystic River.

I found it intriguing when I actually found a reference to a Charlestown potter actually digging clay in the late 1750s. I found this information when I studied John Parker's circa 1747-1761 potter's daybook at the Baker Library at Harvard University. The book indicates that Parker was digging clay for Joseph Larkin's potter's business in 1757. He appears to have dug clay for three hours.


18th Century Reference of Digging for Clay in Charlestown

A Page from John Parker's Circa 1747-1761 Charlestown, Mass. Potter's Daybook

It is Documented that he Dug Clay for Joseph Larkin in 1757

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: The Baker Library - Harvard University

Interestingly, a 1766 edition of the 'Boston Post Boy' newspaper shows that a shipment of Medford bricks were shipped to Marblehead, Massachusetts. It was an unfortunate incident, where the ship sank in Marblehead harbor and two men drowned. But this is likely proof that some of the bricks produced in Medford were shipped elsewhere in New England before the American Revolution. Afterwards, many communities in coastal Massachusetts became self sufficient with fulfilling their own bricks needs in the late-eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries.

1766 Boston Post Boy Newspaper

The Paper Indicates that a Shipment of Medford, Mass. Bricks were Sent to Marblehead, Mass.

But the Ship Sank in Marblehead Harbor and Two Men Drowned

See Article for More Information

Photo Courtesy: Boston Public Library

Note: For more information about the production of red earthenware and stoneware in Charlestown, Massachusetts before the American Revolution - I suggest these articles, which I have posted in the last week.

1) Charlestown: New England's Potter's Industry, Circa 1635-1775

2) The Stoneware Made in Charlestown, Massachusetts, Circa 1741-1745

3) An Important Red Earthenware Potter's Daybook, Circa 1747-1761

4) A Stoneware Handle Recovered in a Mid-18th Century Context

5) An Unusual 18th Century Stoneware Cup

6) An Important Stoneware Saggar Recovered in Charlestown

Please Stay Tuned...Much More to Come...