University of Virginia Library

Arrival of Brickmasons

Other than Jefferson's letter to Latrobe, correspondence for the period is silent about
progress on the buildings at the Central College until the middle of June, when the
bricklayers finally arrived to begin their work. The process of brickmaking of course was
carried on in full force as the seasonal weather permitted in order to prepare the final
product for the workmen's schedule. In an age when most buildings were still built entirely
of wood, making several hundred thousand brick was quite an undertaking.[114] Bricks are
simple artificial building blocks made out of natural materials (chiefly clay, lime, and water,
with small quantities of other compounds) that are baked at a temperature much higher than
the boiling point to expell the water. Although the sizes and usages of bricks varied widely
from place to place, as did the exact "processes of manufacture," the "standard" size or
"building dimensions" of bricks in the 19th century was about the same as today, 9 inches
long, 4 inches wide, and 3 inches thick. Hand-made bricks typically require some type of
mold to form the blocks' shape and to allow for sun-drying before burning and cooling,
which takes place in a kiln, itself a brick structure built to house thousands of bricks.[115]
When writing about Jefferson's insistence on the use of stone and marble in The South in
Architecture, Lewis Mumford observed that building with brick and stone was "a little
different" from what the average American workers were used to. "It took time to explore
the resources of clay and stone; to test out their hardness, their ability to stand fire, their
weathering qualities. Native resources are not always immediately visible; and when they
are, there are often difficulties of transportation to overcome."[116] Jefferson was fortunate in
that his beloved Virginia Piedmont provided a ready source of quality clay and lime, and
when the bricklayers arrived at the college on 17 June John Perry wasted no time in
notifying Jefferson that "The Brick layers got here yesterday and will begin to lay Some
time this evening. I Should be glad you Could make it Convenient to Come to the building
to day—the dormetories will be laid of to day—the Circle next the road is Staked of So that
you Can See how to fix on the level."[117] Before the end of the month Hugh Chisholm was
drawing $800 to pay to John Perry "on account of Brick work done at the Central
College."[118]