At the end of the 18th century, the adjacent building (Rusthoven) came into the hands of Trijntje Willems Tichelaar, daughter of the stone manufacturer. In 1804 she sold it to the 33-year-old pastor's son Jan Hindrik Sissingh from Solwerd, who built a brick factory near the borg in the same year. Jan dies 10 years later. The building was extensively modified in 1819 by Wiepke Smedes, Jan's widow, who also took over the management of the brick factory.
In 1836 the factory was sold to Johannes Koning Uilkens, who invested heavily in mechanization and the typical Groningen drying sheds (1868). From 1854 there are two brick factories on Rusthoven, namely one for bricks and one for (stone) pipes and there were also two different shifts working. The then modern ring kiln was built in 1924, which is still partly visible today as a ruin.
Around 1200, field kilns were used in northern Europe for firing bricks. This usually happened in a place close to the construction site and where there was good clay. Often the field oven was also located on a waterway or a path, so that fuel and stones could be easily transported. Remains of such a field oven can still be found in Balloo (Dr). Over time, fixed kilns were built on the outskirts of residences and on large farms (borgen) called tichelwerken.
The brickworks were called brickworks over time, as they became larger and more mechanized. The kilns got bigger and dry barns were added. Then came the ring kiln, which was installed near Rusthoven in 1924. It was a large, oval-shaped furnace, consisting of several chambers, each of which could be fired separately. When a room was heated (approx. 1000˚C), the heating in the room before it was stopped and the room was preheated afterwards. This way less fuel was needed.
When it comes to the organization of the brickworks and factories, there are a number of things that stand out. In general it can be said that the owner hardly interfered with the actual making of the stones. The owner, very often women (widows) made agreements with the distiller from Lippe. The stoker, who was called fire master in Germany until well into the 19th century, then led the entire factory, including the staff. There were special agents in Lippe who recruited personnel and were called tile messengers. The tichelbode had a fixed circle of owners with whom he worked. (from the hiking guide of the Tichelpad)
Translated by Google •
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