Bosschaerts Persyn genealogical research: Bosschaerts - Persyn Genealogy

Bosschaerts - Persyn Genealogy - Historical notes

Boom and the brick business

The brick business in the Rupel region is one of the most important industries on the Flemish part of Belgium, and it probably can be considered as one of the main industries of Belgium. The raw material is the known Belgian clay of the Rupel, with a high industrial value. This clay can be found almost at the surface on a reasonably large expanded area in the province of Antwerp along the water course of the rivers Schelde, Rupel and Nete. Its favourable location has caused the existence of the important industrial centres along the edges of the Rupel e.g. Hemiksem, Niel, Boom, Terhagen and Rumst. Less important exploitations were found in the East Flanders at Burcht, Rupelmonde, Steendorp and Sint Niklaas and in the province of Antwerp at Putte, Lier, Kontich and Wilrijk. A new location was self formed along the ‘Channel of the Kempen’ at Rijkevorsel and Sint Lenaerts.
In the Rupel Region the clay layer can be found at some places with a thickness of about 25 meters above the water layer level of the rivers; below this level the thickness is lesser known.

The brick business is imported in our province around the 13th century by the priests of the old Abbey of Saint Bernardus in Hemiksem. They established themselves at the edges of the Rupel and made the first bricks to build their abbey. Until 1868 we knew only hand stone bakeries. A first remarkable thing that changed this industry, was the invention of the oven with continuing fire, better known as 'ring oven'. Later on this type of oven was optimized, and now it a ‘zigzag’ oven.

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