144 
GEOLOGY OF THE FIRST DISTRICT. 
The brick yard at Tarrytown has been in operation about forty years, and was established 
by James Wood, the father of the proprietors occupying it in 1838. He is said to have in¬ 
vented and patented the improvement in burning bricks by the use of anthracite. 
This method is a great improvement over the former one not only in expense, but in saving 
time. Four days only are required to burn a kiln, while formerly fourteen to sixteen were 
necessary, where wood alone was employed, and the expense is reduced about three-fifths. 
The bricks being somewhat porous, permit the air to penetrate to the particles of anthracite 
diffused through their substance, and the heat is thus applied just where it is required, and 
without loss ; and the wood is necessary merely to raise the temperature of the bricks to such 
a point that the anthracite shall begin to burn. 
The principle involved in this improvement has been long in use in Europe ; and in En¬ 
gland their brick earth is required by law to be mixed with a certain proportion of the ashes of 
stone coal, which always contain much coke or half burnt coal, and which, during the burn¬ 
ing, performs the same office as the dust of anthracite, and makes hard burnt bricks. Many 
improvements have been made in the brick manufacture within a few years, and they are all 
in use in the brick yards on the Hudson river. The most important are those for grinding 
the clay, for moulding by machinery, and the one for burning that has already been mentioned. 
At Carpenter’s yard, below Peekskill, the grinding and moulding are effected by steam power. 
The clay and sand banks along the banks of the Hudson contain the elements of wealth and 
industry, which will require a great length of time and the most favorable circumstances to 
exhaust. 
The quantity of dust anthracite employed in the Hudson river brick yards, is about three 
pecks to 1000 bricks, or seventy-five bushels to 100,000 bricks. The kilns generally contain 
300,000 to 400,000 bricks, but some are burnt containing 1,000,000. The time formerly 
required to burn the brick kilns with wood alone, was about thirteen to fourteen days. It took 
about forty cords of oak wood to 100,000 bricks. With this improved method, they burn 
their kilns in three to four days, with a consumption of only sixteen cords of wood to 100,000 
bricks. Wood is worth five dollars per cord, and dust anthracite costs $0'75 to $1'25 per 
ton. 
The former cost of burning was as follows : 
For 100,000 : 40 cords wood, at five dollars per cord,.$200 
14 days attendance, say. 20 
$220 
By the improved method, the cost is. 
For 100,000 : 16 cords wood, at five dollars per cord,. $80 
75 bushels dust anthracite, at one dollar per ton,.... 3 
4 days attendance,. 6 
