AUDUBON COUNTY TODAY. (CONT'D)
BUILDING MATERIALS.
SCOTT BROTHERS, AUDUBON.
As is the case in most all new countries of the west the private buildings have nearly all been built of wood, but with the later and more substantial growth of the county brick has been largely introduced and will eventually become the material universally used. Lumber has been, of course, quite expensive, and it is cause for congratulation that from among the rich and versatile resources of our own fair county we are enabled to manufacture a material in every way superior and more economical than lumber for building purposes. Reference is had to brick, which is now being manufactured both at Audubon and Exira, so that all parts of the county may be conveniently supplied. The experience of brick makers in the early days was not altogether successful, and there were misgivings that the clay was not of the proper quality for that purpose, but the coming of experienced men with approved machinery has annihilated such doubts, for the quality of brick now manufactured is as good as can be found in any part of Iowa. The manufacturing enterprise is in good hands, men who in advancing their own interests are increasing the wealth of the country, and in this immensely important particular of building material are giving the country the best article at the lowest possible price. The introduction of machinery for manufacturing pressed brick has greatly improved the quality, as it makes a material that withstands the elements as successfully as stone itself. The capacity of the manufactures already established is thirty thousand every twenty-four hours, and it has been taxed to its fullest extent to meet the demand. Another season will see an immense increase in this industry, as the coming year will see many of our frame buildings rebuilt of this material.
AUDUBON BRICK YARD. CHARLES TRAMP.
Stone is necessarily imported, as the land is by nature adapted to the growth of crops.
WATER.
The splendid natural system of drainage, with the several streams mentioned in the first chapter, compose excellent advantages for securing water, and there are few farms in the entire county that are not blessed with
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running water, making fine tracts for stock farming. Many springs gush from the valleys and hillsides, whose waters are clear and pure as crystal, and inexhausticle. [sic? inexhaustible] Wells of pure and never-failing water are found at depths ranging from twenty to forty feet, making the expense, where delving is necessary, very light. It is convenient in all localities and always pure. In the divine gift of adequate water supply Audubon county is abundantly blessed.
It has been assured that an artesian well may be secured by boring to a depth of one thousand feet, at an approximate expense of $1,500, but such a project has found little encouragement while a supply so altogether sufficient is found so much nearer the surface. However, it has been considered, and will doubtless be among the public enterprises of the near future.
Transcribed February, 2025 by Cheryl Siebrass from History of Audubon and Audubon County, Iowa,
The Eden of the West., 1887, pp. 15-16.
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