Monument record MDO27870 - Hawker's Hill Brickworks, Motcombe

A brickworks first recorded in 1838. It was acquired by the Gillingham Pottery, Brick and Tile Company in the 1890s. It closed in 1939 and the land sold in 1945. The site is now occupied by Old Brickyard Farm. Former 19th and 20th century brickworks, converted to a farm since around 1940. The brickyard sheds, once open-sided, were bricked up to create cow sheds, and the Suffolk-type kiln was demolished in 1968.

A brickworks first recorded in on the Motcombe Tithe map and Apportionment, 1838 with the owner and occupier listed as George Chitty. The brickworks were later acquired by Earl Grosvenor, Marquess of Westminster. The brickworks flourished in the 1850s-60s. It produced hand-made bricks with the letter 'W' in the frog (for Westminster). It was acquired by the Gillingham Pottery, Brick and Tile Company in the 1890s. It closed in 1939 and the land sold in 1945. The site is now occupied by Old Brickyard Farm. <1>

About 1908 an oil engine was installed and the old mixing shed was demolished and new housing erected. A Tangye Engine was installed in 1929. <1> <2>

The changes in the layout of the brickworks and the extent of the brickpits in the late 19th and earlier 20th century are shown on the Ordnance Survey 25-inch maps. <3> <4> <5>

Recorded by NRIM. <6>

<1> Ross, M S, 1991, 'Brickmaking in Gillingham and Motcombe, Dorset' Proceedings of the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society (Article in serial). SDO12411.

<2> Young, D, 1971, Brick making in Dorset (Article in serial). SWX7607.

<3> Ordnance Survey, 1864, 1886, Ordnance Survey 25-inch map, epoch one (Map). SDO10239.

<4> Ordnance Survey, 1900, Ordnance Survey 25-inch map, epoch two (Map). SDO11594.

<5> Ordnance Survey, 1923-33, Ordnance Survey 25-inch map, epoch three (Map). SDO11595.

<6> Royal Commission on Historic Monuments, National Record of Industrial Monuments (NRIM), DO24 (Index). SDO17399.

Recorded by D Young, 05-Apr-1974

<7> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1514322 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Oct 1 2022 12:28PM