I sometimes get questions like “where can I buy antique brick?” Or “how can I fix my old brick barn?” Sometimes these questions are easy to answer and sometimes they are hard. First of all, antique brick is not antique because it is common. Named bricks (ones with the name of the city or builder stamped into them) are less common and therefore hold more value. Some Chaska bricks had the name “Chaska” stamped into them and are still somewhat common even today. However, they can easily command $5 to $10 per brick. Bricks that have no stamp on them are less expensive because it is hard to determine where they came from.
Where can you find antique bricks? Clearly the internet auction realm is the way to go or they may even be listed in the local newspaper. Online auctions can bring some pretty decent amounts for just a single brick, depending how rare it is. If you want more than one brick, the challenge can be even greater. The best way to get a bunch of antique bricks is to find an old building which is being torn down or will soon be torn down. If you can contact the owner, sometimes they plan on selling these bricks. If so, they are usually willing to sell a bunch of the brick as a lot. Sometimes the owner even knows where the brick came from.
Larger cities restore old buildings as part of the National Historic Register or other local use projects. When old buildings get torn down, sometimes they stockpile old bricks to use in restoring other buildings. I have seen the cities of Chaska and Carver keep stockpiles around just in case they are needed somewhere. So you may have some competition from larger entities for these bricks. I have also seen people tear down old brick structures, such as barns, just to recycle the bricks for other uses. At Lake Mary, Minnesota, I found an old barn where all the bricks had already been spoken for. Near Sauk Centre, Minnesota, I saw another barn being taken down for the bricks. So it is possible to come across old antique bricks for sale.
Finally, I want to put in a plug for advertising. My web site is here for the purpose of finding information about bricks, whether that be people who specialize in repairing old barns, people who do tuckpointing, or people selling antique bricks. I really hope some of these people contact me about any brick services they provide or could use. I would really hope that my site becomes a clearing house of information related to old bricks. I almost bought an old barn to restore myself, so I had started looking into finding help with the barn restoration process. These people are key to preserving old brick structures. Let me know if I can help you out!
Tony Robyn
Found a cream colored half size brick with woelrd Soap stamped in it. Riverton, KS
Adolph Medina
I have several old red bricks with different logos stamped on them. I have some with ABILENE, ☆, DIAMOND, and MEXICO on the front of them. I was wondering if you could tell me how old they may be and who manufactured them. I appreciate your time and am hoping you can shed some light on the subject. Thank you in advance.
Admin
The only one I have any information on is the Mexico one, and that is a fire brick from Mexico, MO. You can review the information I have at: https://www.mnbricks.com/mexico-brick/
Jordan Roberts
I have similar bricks. Where is the best place to look or how can I identify these old bricks? Thank you!
Jordan Roberts
I have 2 bricks stamped with mexico tilted in the center bottom left corner has a diamond shape. One of the bricks thw letters C M A M are visible within the diamond. The letter C being at the top point. On the right top corner there is what appears to be a star or a sun.
Scott
We are taking down a building in Minnesota. A lot of the bricks are yellow in color and have the word Kelly stamped on them. Can you tell me about when and where this type of brick was made? I’m trying to determine when the building was built and a little history about the bricks. Thanks
Hubert Seiler
Do you know anything about ceramic bricks used at great northern railroad Station platforms,?
Admin
Yes, ceramic bricks were common on GN station platforms. I can’t remember the name, but most were stamped with the maker’s mark as well. These were not made in Minnesota.
James Richards
I have a few Ajax bricks made in Hutchinson Mn. in the past, unearthed in my back yard. any ideas? all are in great condition
Gail
My daughter just purchased an English Tudor styled home that was built in 1925 I. Moorhead, MN. I have never seen this type of brick before. Every brick has 3 horizontal layers of different colors (red, tan, green). We were told they were called “Manufacture Painted Brick”, but I cannot find any information at all on them. It was apparently a very short lived manufacturing process and this is the only home I have ever seen with these. Does anyone know who may have made them and how long they were manufactured? My daughter would like to add a garage but cannot find any brick to match. I wish I could post a picture or email a picture to someone.
Steve Lefeber
I have just found a brick marked Minnesota ceramic in the woods behind my house just wondering if anyone has information on this company as I can find nothing
Gene Klingbeil
found a wood brick mold in Minneapolis with the letters?RLV on them. can you advise name or factory were made?
Elizabeth Adam
I found a brick at the bottom of lake vermillion with the name Kelly on it! Was that the name or is the name of a brick company?
Daniel Mills
I have a Chaska Brick with the initials C K inscribed on it. Could this be Charles or Christian Klien’s initials?
Rosanne Shalf
Did the Minnesota brick companies ever sell to someone in Ashland Virginia? We have two houses built of silo brick and would like more information on them. Any clues would be great.
Dillon
I have found a old brick at a sandstone quarry stamped CR&FB company with two XX at the bottom wondering if I could find out who made them the rock quarry is over a hundred years old
Izzy
I found a similar brick in the north-west lower peninsula of Michigan, stamped with “CR & FB CO” and says “AJAX” below it. Assuming you live in Minnesota, I would think that whoever CR & FB Company was was shipping these bricks on Lake Michigan. Sadly, I have no information and can find no information on the company.
Todd Wichman
I have these bricks in my house. They were used in a Fireplace that I am restoring. CR&FB CO with the word AJAX underneath. I assume these were firebrick. I would like to find a source for these – need a couple more!
Matt Alsip
I am looking for ALSIP stamped/embossed bricks. Anyone have any? Robert Williams, do you have any for sale?
Carol
Hello, I own a 1941 3 room school building in maplewood, minnesota. I have found bricks, (smaller than normal in size), and imprinted with the word “soap”. I am curious to know the history behind them!
Thanks, Carol
Audrey Larson
My grandparents used to have an outdoor oven/fireplace built of purington pavers. We’d like to know the value of the bricks and how we might go about selling/advertising them, please? Thank you!
Robert williams
Kimberly,
As historian, can you tell me how long ago Alsip stopped stamping the name in Chicago bricks? Have quite a few that were purchased in Pensacola, Florida to add on to our home there that was also full Chicago brick and many of these have Alsip stamped on them. Many also have the thumb and hand impression from the process of removing them from the mold.
I was just wondering how old these bricks may be.
Thank you for any information.
Robert Williams
Kimberly Hunter
I have a friend that purchased a old farm and he ia taking apart old barn ,house and trying to figure out how to have Old silo and grain buildings off the property..Do the old silos have value? The farm was built in early to mid 1800’s.. Thank you Kimberly
Beth Hanggi
I found a cream colored Brick with Kelly imprinted on it. I was wondering if you have any information on it? Where it was made, and the possible age.
Thank you.
Shari Taylor Wilsey
Hi I am putting an addition on my 1904 Clarence Johnston home on historic Summit Ave do you know of a source who can make brick to match, ours is not terra cotta, it is two stones crushed and fired some how?
Shari Wilsey
Jim
I have about 330 old heavy bricks stamped Minnesota Ceramic Co. I read earlier that they were from Coon Rapids. They’re all stacked and ready to go, just wondering what I could/should ask for them. Any help or interest would be appreciated. Thanks – Jim in West Fargo.
deb
I am tearing down a brick outbuilding in Bowlus, Mn.
Rather than wasting the bricks I am thinking about gently stacking them on pallets to sell. How can I find out if there is a demand for them and where I should advertise them?
jerry Moehnke
Good Day,
this fall or this spring i will be tearing down a 100 yr old farm house in Little Canada..
larger two story.. bricks are red/rust in color and look to be in good shape.
Do you know of someone that would like to have me send a picture to?
regards
Jerry
Don Gerling
I found an old reddish brick with a Capitol C stamped into it . I found it on the north shore of Lake Superior. Do you know it’s origin.
Gabriel Baum
Hey, my name is Gabriel and I received a brick from an old lady who purchased over 30 some years ago a brick when Devils Island Prison was closing down. It says AD on it and anyhow, I was trying to sell it. She bought it for 50$ in 1973.. So I have an interested buyer, but I’m not sure how much it’s worth. Any clue what is a good price? Thank You
William Curran
Need replacement bricks for restoration of a church entryway. The bricks are decorative curved molding trim on either side of and over the arched entry doors, and they appear to be molded in the size of common brick. The building was erected in 1842 and rebuilt in the 1880’s. We can provide pictures and drawings of the brick shapes.
Any product or information you can provide is appreciated.
Phillip James
I have a old school building , built in 1927 around there. I want to sell the bricks. they are 4X8 with no holes . I am interested in selling the bricks. Can you help me ? Thanks Phillip James in Laurelville, Ohio.
Andy Fjerstad
Hello I live in Zimmerman MN and I found a brick in my back yard that says “Capital” on it and I cannot find any other pictures of any other brick that looks like that in a google search. I’m just wondering if it is something you guys would know about. Any help would be appreciated. I can send picture’s if needed.
Thank you!
Tom Ness
ive been given the oportunity to reclaim brick from an old abandoned farm house near morton, mn. They are soft orange soft brick arround 100 yrs old. The were more than likely made manufactured at the old Morton Brick & Tile Co. Im wondering what the value of them would be before I would decide to take on the project? There are also Granite window sils.
jim
I have 6 to 700 CHASKA bricks. Imprinted CHASKA , They are smaller than the average brick . some are normal size most are the smaller size. what are they worth ?? I’d like to sell them
Kevin H
A friend got 1500 Purington Pavers that she is going to use for garden paths. The previous owner said they were originally from St. Paul streets. They look like this:
http://www.burlingtonroute.com/image/purington_paver.jpg
I was wondering if the square indentation on the side with the wording had a purpose? Not all of the bricks had this square indentation.
It was interesting to see some of the bricks with thumb or finger indentations from the people that made them. On a few you could even see a finger print preserved in the brick.
Thanks,
Kevin
mike burnett
anyone have any info on an old brick that has the words “DAVIS CROWN” on it ? and also an old brick with the words “STEVENS ” on it, in somewhat of a black print. I own 10 acres of woods/hammock next to a spring in the city of Hudson ,FL just west of Tampa and in the woods,about a foot down,buried,ive uncovered a brick circular structure with a few right angles coming off of it,and the bricks mentioned above have been found….in the early 1900’s my area was a sawmill town and there were also turpentine mills…im wondering if the structure was part of a kiln or something that would be used in an operation like those…..am also wondering if maybe what i found are old pillars from a burned down building….or a burial site…??? in the area also finding old big pieces(palm of hand sized) of some kind of structure with manmade forms/curves to it-seems like a cross between concrete and sandstone…
Charlotte Wilson
Just saw your 1013 post about antique bricks west of Tamps and am wondering what you may have learned since then. I’m on a small team of people researching an old sawmill site in south central FL and found a few Stevens bricks–which we believe might’ve been part of a drying kiln but aren’t certain. Would love to know what you’ve learned. Are you near Willow perhaps?
Joseph Sasenger
HI, i have 100,000 old bricks from a 130 year old building im taking down and i have no clue what to do with them, and i’m in missouri. Thank You.
Dave Anderson
Does anyone on this site have pavers for sale? I would like to pave an area about 1000 sq ft and would prefer recycled pavers to buying new.
Thanks
Kay
Hi, I am in charge of restoring a 100 year old gothic cathedral made of red pressed brick in Crookston, MN. I am looking for more brick. Please let me know if you have any. These have no name on them, just the rectangle indent on the top. Crookston had a brick factory at one time. Anyone with brick from this factory may have the correct brick. Need about 10 asap. Any information on the history of this brick, or where I may find it would be greatly appreciated!
Alex Parker
I recently got 115,000 antique brick that were made in 1920. They were made by the Maysville Brick company, in Kentucky, although I can not find any info on them. The brick, which is 8x4x2.25 inches, has M.B.C.O or Maysville imprinted on them. Any information on the history, or potential value would be greatly appreciated.
Fred Wolter
Kathy, your Minnesota Ceramic Co. brick was manufactured at Coon Creek, now known as Coon Rapids, MN. Unlike the soft, light bricks that were used for chimneys and facades, the Minnesota Ceramic bricks were given a much longer and hotter firing, resulting in a product that was “highly vitrified” and suitable for use as a paving brick. That’s why it’s so heavy. As far as I know it was the only paving brick ever made in Minnesota. Their primary use seems to have been for railroad station platforms in Minnesota and the Dakotas, especially along the Great Northern routes. They are not too easy to find, as the company existed for only about four years (1903-07) and only seems to have had good production years in 1905 and 1906. They never really were able to turn out a consistently good product. I’ve seen these bricks with deep cracks, big holes and sharp edges. That does give them a lot of character, though, which is why they are my favorite bricks among the many I’ve collected.
Carol Gibbs
Richard Meals – I recently bought a Chaska Brick home (an old farmhouse) in Liberty Heights, which I feel is absolutely beautiful! Although I realize you are interested in selling your bricks in quantity, I would love to buy three to five of them, if you are interested in considering that. I would like to show my friends and relatives from California what Chaska Brick is when they come to visit (without taking my house apart)!
Gary Tefft
I noticed in the information on brick maker George Wilkinson of Red Wing that “St Paul” was inserted parenthetically in the text after “Hamlin University.” Hamlin University was founded in Red Wing and operated there for a number of years as the first institution of higher learning in Minnesota. Because many of its students and instructors left to join the Union forces during the Civil War it struggled and ultimately was moved to St Paul, where it has continued ever since.
Kathy Oldenburg
I was just wondering if you could tell me anything about the Minnesota Ceramic Co.I have a brick here that is dark reddish brown and very heavy with that name on it.The only thing i could find was a picture of it in the CrookstonTimes.com and the article said they didn’t know anything about the company.Any information would be great.Thank You,Kathy
Danny Langone
I am demolishing a portion of my building and want to know the history of the brick. The building was originally a linen mill built in 1895 and then became Freeman Shoe Company in 1925. The brick are either cream or yellow and are marked ” Aaron>”. Do you have any idea as to where they may have originated and by whom? I am in Beloit, Wisconsin.
Jack May
We want to preserve an A.C.O silo and will need a few unique brick or tile pieces for the top of the silo. Anyone have any bricks or tile from and A.C.O. Silo?