Museum exhibit tells the story of our province’s building blocks

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 06/09/2023 (761 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Manitoba Brick and Block Collection exhibit opened at the Settlers, Rails and Trails Museum in Argyle, Man., on July 15. It tells the history of a once-flourishing industry in the province that created the building blocks for our neighbourhoods, towns and cities.

Since 1855, when Charles Lund made the first bricks for Upper Fort Garry, there have been 196 brick manufacturing companies in Manitoba at 70 different locations. The industry peaked in the province in 1912 with 80 million bricks manufactured in one year.

The vast amount of energy and backbreaking labour it took to manufacture bricks, plus the introduction of newer building materials in the post-war era, meant a steady decline in the number of brick manufacturers through the twentieth century. Manitoba’s last plant, Red River Brick and Tile of Lockport, closed in 1990.

The collection first came to the Settlers, Rails and Trails Museum in 2017 with the donation of the personal collection of Gord McDiarmid, whose family operated a prominent Manitoba construction company in the early part of the 20th century. From there, museum staff and volunteers have scoured the province to add to it and create a permanent exhibit in which to display them.

The exhibit includes building models, brickmaking tools and, of course, bricks. The museum’s goal is to collect at least two examples from each of the 196 manufacturers and it currently has around 40 per cent of that. A wish list of bricks and other artefacts being sought can be found on the museum’s website.

The Settlers, Rails and Trails Museum is located 45 minutes from Winnipeg in Argyle, Man., and is open on the first Saturday of each month from 1 to 4 p.m. or by appointment. Admission is free.

More information about the exhibit and museum can be found on its website at www.settlersrailsandtrails.com or by emailing argylemuseum@gmail.com