Brick making at Escrick has been carried out for centuries. Brick Close was recorded at Deighton in 1619, and Brick Kiln Close in 1679 (1). What became known as Escrick Brickyard, situated to the West of Riccall road, was operating before 1834, and may have been established by 1769 when the Act was passed allowing Beilby Thompson Esq of Escrick Park to move the church and villagers' houses away from the Hall to a new site.(2) It was often the practice to dig clay and fire the bricks...

Brick making at Escrick has been carried out for centuries. Brick Close was recorded at Deighton in 1619, and Brick Kiln Close in 1679 (1). What became known as Escrick Brickyard, situated to the West of Riccall road, was operating before 1834, and may have been established by 1769 when the Act was passed allowing Beilby Thompson Esq of Escrick Park to move the church and villagers' houses away from the Hall to a new site.(2)

It was often the practice to dig clay and fire the bricks locally, and suitable clay was available on the Thompson's estate to the make bricks and tiles needed for the new houses and the new church. In 1831 the newly built church was described as ‘a modern edifice of brick with stone quoins and dressings’.(3)

In November 1834, Beilby Thompson Esq wrote the following letter from his London home at 29 Berkeley Square to Mr Robert Beart of Godmanchester Mills, Huntingdon: Sir - I have to acknowledge and to thank you for your two letters, and to assure you that as far as I have hitherto tried it, approve highly of your patent tile machine. I find, however, one defect in it which I consider arises chiefly from the too great closeness of my clay, viz. that the air gets into the clay and spoils the surface of at least one tile in each box of clay. I hope however, to be able to obviate this next season, and in the meantime, I will thank you to send me a fuller and more explanatory statement of your new brick machine. Be kind enough to direct your answer to Escrick Park, Doncaster, and to believe me your friend and well-wisher, Beilby Thompson Esq.’ (4)

Five years later, Beilby Thompson was created Baron Wenlock, and in the 1850s, Escrick brickworks were described as belonging to the estate of Lord Wenlock.(1) The 1851 census shows that it was giving employment to several workers from Escrick and Riccall. Amongst those listed are John Brooks, brick maker, widower aged 67, Thomas Leak (once a tailor), aged 54, Robert Gowthorpe 27, William House 43, Thomas Foster 25, Barnabas Wright 44, James Leach 32, John Cross 22, David Horsfall 39 and William Blenkham thirty-seven.

In 1892 John Raper was described as Manager of Escrick Brick and Tile Works.(7) His address was as the 'The Brickyards', and he was aged 65 when the 1901 census was taken. Also at 'Brickyard' were Joseph W Raper 20 and Joseph Barker 45, both brick and tile makers. The brickyard was sold by Escrick Park Estate in 1953 (1), and with an increased demand for land drainage pipes, the clay was used exclusively for that purpose. However, when plastic pipes became available, the brickyard, now owned by the Okeland company, turned to making ceramic goods.(5)

By 1850 there were least eighty brickyards in the East Riding and some of these continued into the
1970s including ones at Kexby and Newport. Only the former estate brick works at Escrick remained
in use in 1994.(6) Although the site is known as a brick works, the manufacture of bricks and tiles ceased in 1991, and was demolished in 2006.

In the 1990s, an application was made by Plasmor Limited, who had owned Escrick brickyard for some years and had extracted clay from the site, to continue extracting clay from Escrick in order to
maintain supply of material to their kilns in the village of Heck.

Planning permission was granted by Selby County Council on 14 January 1992 for an extension to the clay workings together with the backfilling of the void with domestic, commercial and industrial waste.

key to references:
(1) Victoria County History, East Yorkshire vol III
(2) Escrick, A Village History, J P G Taylor, 1999
(3) A New and Complete History of the County of York. Thomas Allen, 1831
(4) vol. 7 of The Farmers Magazine
(5) conversation with local residents
(6) Yorkshire: York and the East Riding, Nikolaus Pevsner, David Neave