This small house on First Street in Deseronto looks to have an idyllic location nowadays: no immediate neighbours and a pleasant view of open fields behind it.
House on First Street (from Google Street View)
But over one hundred years ago, its location was considerably less ideal. You can see it at the bottom left of the photograph below. Immediately behind the house was the vast site of the Rathbun Company’s brick and terra cotta works, busy with railway cars transporting raw materials to the factory from the Rathbun Company’s sawmills (sawdust was a key ingredient in the production of terra cotta):
Brick and Terra Cotta works
The works was in operation from 1887 until 1898, when it was destroyed by fire. As the house was so close to the buildings of the terra cotta works, it was fortunate to survive the blaze itself.
Deseronto Archives 
July 18, 2012 at 1:53 pm
When I look at that property it is hard to believe that all that was going on at one time. Thanks for showing us.
Sharon Sharpe
July 18, 2012 at 4:49 pm
It is hard to believe Deseronto was such a blooming town at one time. It is unfortunate that things have to change with the times and economy. And unfortunately in Deseronto, the scenery is still changing.
Great to learn new things about the old though. Fantastic.
Marilyn M
July 18, 2012 at 10:08 pm
If it is the house I think it is my parents lived across First st from this house which was at that time the home of Mrs. Mansfield. What was made at the Ter ra Cotta works?
July 19, 2012 at 7:49 am
Hi Valerie – the works made bricks as well as terra cotta, a mixture of clay and sawdust which could be moulded into decorative shapes or into fire-resistant blocks which were used in the construction of buildings. There are many old houses in Deseronto which have terra cotta decorative features – most of which would have been made in this factory.
Here’s an example:
