{"nrhp_refnum":"79002991","name":"Droemer Brickyard Site","other_names":["Droemer Brick Kiln","41le30"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"1 mi. SW of Giddings on Old Serbin Rd","address_restricted":false,"city":"Giddings","county":"Lee County","state":"TX","lat":30.172840480000048,"lon":-96.95225025299999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-11-07","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A brickyard site one mile southwest of Giddings along Old Serbin Road in Lee County, Texas, operated by the Droemer family from 1870 to 1940. It includes an early kiln foundation, clay pit, clay storage and molding shed, and a round down-draft kiln built in 1924.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the site is an unusually intact survivor of the many small farmer-operated brickyards that worked across Texas between the 1830s and 1940. It preserves a 70-year span of rural industry and shows how local brick was made before heavy industrialization. The shed and the crown-like round kiln are cited as pleasing examples of rural industrial architecture, and bricks from the yard were reportedly used in the Lee County Courthouse.","narrative":"Along Old Serbin Road, one mile southwest of Giddings, sits what remains of a family brickyard that operated from 1870 to 1940. The Droemer family, German immigrants, made hand-molded brick from clay dug on their farm, and later generations moved to a hand press adapted to tractor power. In 1924 the original rectangular updraft kiln was torn down and its parts reused for a round down-draft kiln with ten flue-stacks and a sharply coned dome. Its interior is coated with green glaze produced by burning post oak. Nearby stand a clay storage and molding shed still holding its press, hammermill and conveyors, the foundation of the early kiln, and the clay pit, now a stock tank. Competition from rail-delivered, mass-produced brick ended operations in 1940. The site is regarded as unusually complete among small Texas brickyards, and bricks from the yard were reportedly used in the Lee County Courthouse. The kiln is deteriorating.","period_of_significance":"1870-1940","architect_builder":"Christian Droemer","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"The site is described as virtually intact, but the round kiln is deteriorating badly, with weeds and trees growing from cracks. The form checks the property as unoccupied and in deteriorated condition.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.274005-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/29/9728/40972829/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/79002991.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002991/eedca07e2b-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79002991/eedca07e2b-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 4.0","author":"Larry D. Moore","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Droemer_Brickyard_Kiln_Ruins_2021.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Larry D. Moore</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Droemer_Brickyard_Kiln_Ruins_2021.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40972829","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110000071"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/lee-county/droemer-brickyard-site-79002991/"}