About the book

“Hounsell draws on an impressive range of sources to inform and illustrate this thorough account of a once widespread industry which was fundamental to the growth of our capital city in the nineteenth century.” Ken Redmore, British Brick Society

“In common with other books in this series, this is a high-quality production and makes thorough use of documentary evidence.” Alice Harvey-Fishenden, Landscape History

“This book is one for the brick enthusiast but there is also much detailed evidence about the social position of the people involved. The economics and business organisation of a major nineteenth-century manufacturing industry is dealt with in great detail.” Michael Coles, The Local Historian

“[T]he definitive account of the capital's Victorian brick industry… this indefatigable work will be a source of reference for years.” Andrew Saint, London Topographical Society Newsletter

“I hope that this book will inspire other regional case studies on the brickmaking industry. In sum, this book will be of interest to anyone interested in the business, economic, transport, social, architectural, and cultural history of nineteenth-century England.” Joe Stanley, Labour History Review

“Beautifully produced and illustrated, [it] provide[s] a scholarly basis for a better understanding of the evolution of London and its suburbs.” Malcolm Airs, Context Magazine

Many of London’s Victorian buildings are built of coarse-textured yellow bricks. These are ‘London stocks’, produced in very large quantities all through the nineteenth century and notable for their ability to withstand the airborne pollutants of the Victorian city. Whether visible or, as is sometimes the case, hidden behind stonework or underground, they form a major part of the fabric of the capital. Until now, little has been written about how and where they were made and the people who made them.

Peter Hounsell has written a detailed history of the industry which supplied these bricks to the London market, offering a fresh perspective on the social and economic history of the city. In it he reveals the workings of a complex network of finance and labour. From landowners who saw an opportunity to profit from the clay on their land, to entrepreneurs who sought to build a business as brick manufacturers, to those who actually made the bricks, the book considers the process in detail, placing it in the context of the supply-and-demand factors that affected the numbers of bricks produced and the costs involved in equipping and running a brickworks.