Brickmaking was an early industry in several Barossa towns, with Nuriootpa developing two well established businesses.
William E Schultz was Nuriootpa’s first brickmaker, establishing a site in Fourth Street in the 1850s.
William died in 1910 and his obituary stated that his bricks were used in many of Nuriootpa’s oldest buildings including the old Post Office. Little evidence of this business remains apart from some red bricks embossed ‘W. SCHULTZ’
Hermann Gustav Krieg established the Nuriootpa Brickyards at Murray Street, Nuriootpa in 1881. His early bricks were embossed ‘H. KRIEG’.
It was reported in 1903 that most of the output of bricks were used in the construction of new wine cellars, to keep pace with the expansion of vineyards.
After the death of HG Krieg in 1920, the Nuriootpa Brickyards were operated by his nephew, OJ Krieg.
The business entered a new era of expansion, including the installation of electricity, new brickmaking machines to increase production, elevators and conveyor belts to minimize brick handling and the installation of new crushers and an extra kiln.