This Web site is an attempt to preserve a family's history. Brickmaking
in the Leonard family dates back to the mid-1800's, beginning with
Edward Leonard, who immigrated from England in 1846. The family tradition
continued with his son, William, and grandsons C. Leon and George,
who operated brickyards in Kalamazoo and Delton, Michigan from the
late 1800's until 1923.
The
photographs on this site are of the brickyard in Delton which was
located on the Chicago, Kalamazoo & Saginaw (CK&S) railway
line, on the road which is now called Brickyard Road, on the outskirts
of Delton. William Leonard purchased this brickyard in 1908, having
sold the brickyard he owned on the Kalamazoo-South Haven line, west
of Kalamazoo in 1906. William changed the name to the Leonard Brick
Company and named his sons, George and Leon, as Vice President and
Secretary/Treasurer. The brickyard shut down in 1918 while Leon and George fought in WWI. In 1919, they were back, bought out their
father and formed a partnership with E.A. Burton of Hastings, and
J.D. Murdock of Delton. In 1920, they bought a Wellington steam
dryer, powered by a Corlis engine, to make the yard a year-round
operation. In 1923, the last bricks were made, and by 1933, all
equipment was removed.The buildings were all gone by the end of
the 1930's. Now, nothing remains except foundations, the brickyard
pond where the clay was dug, and piles and piles of discards (bats).
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