IMPRINTED

   There is a deep connection to the past when discovering a brick with finger impressions reaching up from the mud. The billions bricks bearing the names of brick-maker family dynasties are impressive, but these rare artifacts evoke the average brick yard laborer-“generations of hard working men, women and children- black and white- of diverse nationalities” were employed and here, quite literally “is the entry of their records as they toiled for some of the giants of a once colossal industry.” (Daniel de Noyelles, “Within These Gates”). Over time, this blended community endured difficult working conditions, wage strikes and catastrophic landslides until the Great Depression preluded the industry’s end. Bricks imprinted with the tracks of cats, raccoons, birds and other creatures are unusual but can be found, originating from “older yards, where the green bricks are handled frequently and dried in the open air.” (Karl Gurcke, “Bricks and Brickmaking; A Handbook for Historical Archeology”, p. 124).