Hattiesburg Brick WorksIn early 1904, Mr. William S. Morrison and Mr. Ira Gaston purchased a small brickyard located on the banks of the Bouie River 2 miles northwest of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. The brickyard was then incorporated as the Riverside Brick and Manufacturing Company, and sometime soon after the purchase, Mr. Paul L. Gaston bought Mr. Ira Gaston's interest in the company. The Riverside Brick and Manufacturing Company was the parent company of the Hammond-Baton Rouge Brick Company at Baptist, Louisiana, four miles west of Hammond. This plant was built in 1920. In 1927, the Riverside Brick and Manufacturing Company was sold to R. W. Dunn, W. E. Thigpen, and Herber Gillis. The name was changed to the Hattiesburg Brick Works and was rebuilt in its present location, directly across the public road (now Lakeview Road) from the original plant. The Hammond-Baton Rouge Brick Company was retained by the original owners. In 1946, the Hattiesburg Brick Works was purchased from Mr. Thigpen, who was then the sole owner, by J. D. Lewis; and in March 1966, the Hammond-Baton Rouge Brick Company, still owned by the heirs of William S. Morrison and Paul L. Gaston, bought the Hattiesburg Brick Works from Mr. Lewis. In 1979, the Hattiesburg Brick Works was sold to the Merry Company of Georgia |