The fascinating remains of the brick factory De Groenlanden lie in the Ooijpolder. It is a field kiln, the oldest form of brick production. The preserved masonry is a unique symbol of brick production in the river area, but also of the poor living conditions of that time, because working in the brick factory was no fun. Brick factory In the 19th century, brick factories sprang up like mushrooms along the major rivers. One of those factories was De Groenlanden, founded in 1872 by Robert Jansen from Nijmegen and Frans de Loo from Doornenburg. The factory produced around 4.5 million bricks per year. Around 1900, a steam engine was introduced and in 1915 a ring kiln was built, which was modern for that time. A large-scale modernisation in 1960 could not prevent further closure. The factory closed in 1972.
Hard work In the first few years, the factory employed around 90 workers, including 16 women and 20 children. The work was extremely hard. The clay had to be brought in by wheelbarrow, kneaded, pressed in brick presses and dried in hedgerow huts. The bricks were then stacked between the two walls of the field oven - sometimes as many as a million at a time. The front and back were closed off with baked bricks and the top was covered with sods. Peat was thrown into the oven via the stoking mouths at the bottom and lit. After 2 to 3 weeks, the baked bricks could be seasoned from the oven and the bricks had to be taken to the bag field to cool.
Remains The five-metre high walls of the field oven are still standing proudly. In the area there are more remains of the brick factory to discover, such as houses for the former brick workers, the bag field outside the dike and remains of the electric crane that could put the bricks on a ship. Also a part of the ring oven from 1915 has been preserved, but it is covered with earth.
This rare ruin of a field kiln is a reminder of the first brick making in the Ooij, but also of the hard work by poorly paid workers.
Industrial heritage The Industrial Revolution in the 10th century had major consequences for the landscape and society. It led to an enormous increase in prosperity. There are still many striking monuments of this industrial past throughout Gelderland.
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