Evens & Howard Fire Brick Co.

Evens & Howard Fire Brick Co.
Sketch of Evens & Howard Fire Brick prior to 1904.
An Evens & Howard fire brick found at the Joliet Iron Works ruins in Joliet, Illinois, USA.

The Evens & Howard Fire Brick Company was a manufacturer of fire bricks in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. It was founded formally in 1855 as the Cheltenham Fireclay Works and achieved sales as far away as Quebec[1] and Africa. One source dates the beginning of the company back to 1837 but under different owners.[1] In 1855, the firm was owned by a man named Charles Chouteau.[1] The firm was incorporated in 1867 when Evens & Howard took possession of it.[1] At the time of its operation, it was one of the oldest manufacturers of fire bricks in St. Louis.[2][3] At one point, its grounds covered 133 acres.[4] According to one report, the mining was done below ground by "pick and blast" and the company had an extensive equipment network of cars and tracks to bring clay to the plant.[4]

Evens & Howard also produced sewer pipe beginning as early as 1858.[5]

Richmond Heights

Evens & Howard were instrumental in the establishment of the African American neighborhoods in Richmond Heights, Missouri in the early 1900s. Racial segregation at the time restricted African Americans to specific portions of St. Louis County, and Evens & Howard needed workers for the nearby brickworks. They were able to convince officials to develop the neighborhoods, and many families moved in once the company built employee housing.[6]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "RICHARD J. COMPTON'S (ED.) -- EVENS AND HOWARD BRICK COMPANY FIRE". webster.edu. 1875. http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/dogtown/history/evens-compton.html. Retrieved 2010-01-08. "These works, of which Messrs. Evens & Howard are the present proprietors, have a history extending as far back as 1837. The early days of the works have but little of interest, but in 1855 they were in possession of Mr. Chas. P. Chouteau, who established them on a firm basis, and made a success of them. The present company was incorporated in 1867, when Messrs. Evens & Howard took possession. As the demand for their products increased, these gentlemen kept adding to tile works, as well as increasing the variety of their products, until they are the most extensive in the country, and with a reputation which is only bounded by the length and breadth of the Union; and so well and favorably known is the quality of wares manufactured by these gentlemen, that they find their way to the markets of Quebec. Montreal, and other important points in the British dominions. From the iron district of Lake Superior, and the mines of New Mexico, come orders for their products; while Salt Lake City, the Pacific Slope, and the Gulf States are supplied principally from the same source." 
  2. ^ Harvard, Francis Thompson (1912). Refractories and furnaces. New York City: McGraw-Hill. p. 12. http://books.google.com/?id=NX-JhXBwiTIC. 
  3. ^ "The Clayworking Plants of St. Louis". Brick 20 (5): 232–233. May 1904. http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/dogtown/history/evens-brick.html. Retrieved 2009-05-09. 
  4. ^ a b Unknown (May, 1904). "EVENS AND HOWARD BRICK COMPANY". webster.edu. http://www.webster.edu/~corbetre/dogtown/history/evens-brick.html. Retrieved 2010-01-08. "From: The Clayworking Plants of St. Louis -- In: BRICK. SPECIAL ISSUES ON ST. LOUIS, MAY AND JUNE 1904 May, 1904, p. 232-233. Vol. XX, No. 5 -- The grounds of the plant cover 133 acres. The company has three mines in the city and one mine at Glencoe, Mo., 30 miles away, where about 61 acres are owned. All the mining is done below ground by pick and blast. About 50 men are constantly employed disembowelling the raw material. The company has an extensive equipment of cars and tracks, at Glencoe, for the conveying of the clay to the plant. All clay is weathered for at least six months. The clay from the mines on the plant is hauled to the dry pay by teams, being dumped into storage bins situated near the pans for which it is intended." 
  5. ^ Ries, Heinrich; Henry Leighton (1909). History of the Clay-working Industry in the United States. New York City: John Wiley & Sons. p. 126. http://books.google.com/?id=HqcNAAAAYAAJ. 
  6. ^ McDonald, Joellen Gamp; Ruth Nichols Keenoy (2006-08-14). Richmond Heights: 1868-1940. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. pp. 9, 17, 101 and 110. ISBN 0738539929. 

External links

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