What happened to all the old Minnesota brick makers? With greater numbers of people moving into the state, there would always be a need for brick, right? Yet, in the early 1900s, there were hints that the industry was already hurting. To find the answers to these questions, I have sought out some of the discussion topics from the Minnesota Clay-Brick Manufacturers’ Association meetings.
I am still learning exactly what the Minnesota Clay-Brick Manufacturers’ Association was, so at this point I do not have all the answers. What I plan to do is add a section on this web page devoted to this association. I am thinking about adding a page with a list of years, where a person can click on a specific year and find out association information pertaining to that year. I think the first Minnesota clay-brick association formed around 1902, and may have been called the Northwestern Clay Association.
If you wonder why an association of clay workers in Minnesota began with the word “northwestern,” that answer is simple. In the early 1900s, Minnesota was still considered the northwestern frontier. North Dakota and South Dakota had gained statehood by 1889, but to many, this area was still the northwest. Today we think of the Pacific Northwest as the true “northwest.” As far as the association, the owners of the brickyards in Minnesota wanted to band together to solve some of the issues they faced.
Looking through the discussion topics of the 1908 meeting, several interesting things pop up. The first one is the difference in size of the various brickyards at the time. Some, like the Chaska and Princeton brickyards, were very large. However, probably more numerous were the smaller brickyards, like Moorhead, East Grand Forks, and Fertile. These brickyards could not and did not intend to compete with the larger ones. Yet in 1908, there was an excess of bricks available at the larger brickyards. During the 1908 meeting, someone brought up instituting a cross the board reduction in making new bricks until the excess ones were sold off. This created a furious debate among the attendees.
Another topic brought up at the meeting was to limit the area each brick company could sell in. Does that sound like a free market? I am sure this also caused a lot of debate, as some companies were probably marketing on a large scale, while some owners just depended on word of mouth for their advertising. Therefore, those companies that had more money or ran more efficient operations were probably best set up to weather the tough times.
Railroads were also a topic of discussion. Railroads, at times, held a monopoly over pricing. Until rates became more regulated, people often thought of the railroads as the enemy. True, they did a lot of good, but not to everyone. To the brickyard owner, rail rates in shipping brick could mean the difference between profit and loss. So the brickyard owners were very concerned about the railroads. The flip side is that a brickyard without access to a railroad usually meant that the brickyard would never compete on a large scale.
So look forward to more information on Minnesota brickyards from their association meetings. These association meetings also give a good cross section of the men involved in the business. Presidents, vice-presidents, and secretary-treasurers were usually men who were well respected by their peers. On a different topic, we will soon add information on brickyards at Deer Creek, West Concord, Little Falls, and St. Paul (Twin City Brick Company). We will also be adding information on brickyards at Fertile, Warren, and Willmar.
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