Source: North Manchester Journal, February 16, 1905

BRICK COMPANY ORGANIZES
Directors Chosen to Manage New Corporation.

The stockholders of the Laketon Sand Brick company held their first meeting Saturday afternoon, the session being held in the City Hall. The majority of the stock that has been sold in this company was represented, and the meeting was presided over by N.G. Hunter, of Wabash. The business to be transacted was the selection of a board of directors, this board to consist of five members. Those chosen for this place were Dr. G.L. Shoemaker, N.G. Hunter, B.S. Dunn, Tobias Gushard and W.R. Oyler. These men arranged to have a meeting on Wednesday evening of this week for the purpose of selecting officers, and transacting business relative to the installation of the brick factory.

This company is incorporated for fifty thousand dollars, and the stock is being sold at par. It is the intention to sell only enough of the stock to raise money to install the plant and to put it into operation, the other stock remaining the property of the company to be sold at any time that it is deemed advisable to increase the capacity of the plant. There has been a ready sale of stock so Mr. Oyler, who has had this matter in hand, reports, and there are several persons who are arranging to take more stock in the company in a short time.

The plan and object of this company was stated in the Journal several weeks ago. Briefly it is the intention to establish on the Erie road, southwest of Laketon, a brick factory for the purpose of making brick from the sand that is so abundant there. This sand is mixed with a small per cent of lime, pressed into brick shape, and is dried by steam, the complete brick being ready for delivery within twenty-four hours from the time the sand was first put into the mill. The brick is handsome in appearance, and its wearing qualities have been demonstrated by active tests. There is at present a big demand for brick, bigger than can be supplied. The local factory, owned by M. Geik, has not been able to fill nearly all of the orders it has had. But in Mr. Geik's case the fuel has come to be a matter of great consideration. It has been hard to get wood enough to burn the brick, and where once it was possible go get the wood almost for cutting, now it costs almost a fancy figure, and has to be hauled quite a distance. The Journal wishes for these men who are at the head of this enterprise every success, and will rejoice with them in any prosperity that may come their way.

Source: North Manchester Journal, August 3, 1905

MAKE BRICK NEXT WEEK
Laketon Sand Brick Company Soon to Commence Work.

The end of this week will find nearly all of the machinery for the manufacture of brick at Laketon ready for use. The job of installing this plant has been a big one--much bigger than many at first supposed. The Journal man visited the plant Tuesday, and found that rapid progress has been made during the last few weeks. Over seven car loads of machinery have been put into position and most of it is ready to run. The big smokestack for the power plant was being erected that day, and besides the men who were working on this there was a number of carpenters and machinists at work. A car of line was being unloaded into the bins in preparation for the manufacture of brick. The mixing apparatus is in place for the mixing of the sand and lime, and many of the belts are on ready to begin operations.

Few people realize the enormous proportions of the system. It requires a boiler capable of furnishing 150 horse power, an engine of 75 horse power, and a stamping mill said to exert twenty-three tons pressure, and which will press four brick at a time. After the brick are pressed they are loaded onto cars and run into a drying kiln that looks more like a huge boiler than anything else. It is sixty feet long, and nearly seven feet across the inside, being large enough to hold trucks containing twenty thousand brick. The brick are put into this big kiln during the day, and at night steam is turned into it, and they are dried by this heat. The next morning they are ready to be shoved out, and the kiln can be filled again.

The machine is being installed by the Anderson Machinery company, and everything is to be in readiness for work next week. Nicholas Hay has the carpenter work in charge.

To the south of the plant is a sand hill that is pointed to with pride, for that is the resource from which the mill hopes to draw the supply of sand which in turn will be made into dividends to pay to the stockholders. Not only is there sand in the hill, but there is sand all over a good sized tract of land there, enough sand in fact to wear out several sets of machinery like that being installed at present, so there is no danger of running out of raw material.