Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 120
Advert in
The Builder
for 'Chalfont Dark and
Bright Red Rubbers',
1858. (Courtesy of Alan
Cox)
sale, out of their four London Wharves. Gwilt (1888, 526), discussing the range
of bricks available, also records:
…and Chalfont, supply dark and bright, red rubbers….
It would appear that Chalfont rubbing bricks, like those from other small
yards, probably fell from popular favour with the rise and intensive marketing
of larger and more powerful companies, like Johnson's and Lawrence's high-
quality 'Fareham Red' and 'TLB' rubbers.
Collier's Red Rubbers
S. and E. Collier (Berkshire) were established in
c
.1848 and had various pits
around the Reading area, including Coley Park, Grovelands, and Norcot Hill.
They produced a wide range of fired-clay products including terracotta, roof
tiles, and ornamental finials, as well as ordinary red sand-faced, moulded
bricks, and rubbing bricks that they marketed as 'Reading Red Rubbers'.
Cornard's Rubbers
From 1840 the Little Cornard Brickworks at Sudbury (Suffolk) was established
by the Tricker family and, until the works closed in 1964, passed into other own-
ership several times (Blowers, 1987, 4-8). Working basic topmost clay, which
contained a high proportion of flint that necessitated thorough washing and
screening off into wash pits to mature over winter, they produced both red
and white bricks. They also produced rubbers as purpose-moulded voussoirs
in 303 mm, 355 mm, and 406 mm lengths. These required minimal rubbing to
gain flat bedding surfaces and then cutting by what is termed 'topping and
tailing' to suit the arch templet size and if necessary dummy joints cut-in if the
arch face was to be bonded.
