I’m sure you all know the saying “standing out like a sore finger”. One of Despatch’s main landmarks literally and figuratively embodies that saying. The Despatch Brickworks Chimney was built in 1882 as part of the area’s flourishing brick making industry. In the last 1800’s a railway siding was built forking off the main railway line between Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage. This siding was used to dispatch bricks from the brickworks to Port Elizabeth where most of the buildings of the time were built from bricks out of this area. The bricks business is very much a remnant of the past and the chimney now stands there as a monument to the town’s early history.
A great snippet of history! And a lovely photo – I love the curve of the railway line contrasting with the tall chimneystack.
Nice landmark smartly built with brick which doesn't burn. You probably have some other buildings from the era that still stand because not built from wood. Interesting post.