Originally Posted by Pudwoppa (Post 958073)

I found a different theory about where the NORI name comes from some time ago. It seems more plausible than the others I've heard, and would also explain why it isn't common knowledge. Text is taken from the Penmorfa Old Bricks website.

"There are two places in the British Isles where you get a particular bed of clay containing alumina (refractory ore), lower red marl and iron ore all in the same measure. They are Broseley in Shropshire and Accrington in the Darwen Valley in Lancashire. Both areas are renowned for their very high quality and extremely resillient bricks. At one stage or another on the Broseley clay beds there were around 45 brickworks. One of these was the works of Capt. John Anstice: confusingly named The Madeley Wood Tile Works. Set up in 1851 this works produced bricks, roofing & floor tiles, also chimney pots and land drain pipes. It closed in 1956.

The brand for this company was IRON, as they also owned several ironworks and blast furnaces. When the Accrington Brick Company began mass production, they also branded their bricks IRON. Capt Anstice got to hear of it and threatened them with court action for breach of his brand copyright. So in an excellent euphoria of marketing, Accrington spelled the name backwards on their bricks and advertised that their brick was "Iron whichever way you put it." Hence today the Accrington NORI is well known and the IRON BROSELEY is forgotten."
If that supposition is correct, then Nori must have made some bricks with Iron on them. for Broseley to get uppity, how come some of those have never surfaced in all these years.

This seems more likely than all of the popular local theories I've heard (several listed on this thread). I contacted Tony Mugridge who runs the website to see if he had reference material for this, and unfortunately he didn't, but said that it was considered relatively common knowledge amongst those who know.


He was also able to reasonably discredit the 'muddled mould' theory:

Quite from common sense: To put the letters in the wrong order on a brick would never matter. Only brick collectors and historians are interested in what it says in the frog [the frog is the indented bit at the top and bottom that carries the logo] . But to put the letters in the wrong order in the foundry, well that would never happen as even apprentice work is checked! No business after all, is going to suggest that they changed the brand on their product because they were threatened with legal action because they copied a brand name.
Not only in the Frog some bricks had the name on the face
So my question is, does anyone have a copy of one of these "Iron whichever way you put it" adverts? I haven't been able to find one so far, and I think it would help to finally clear up the mystery.

Originally Posted by cmonstanley (Post 1044864)

just been down a beach in the west of scotland and found it littered with nori bricks heres a few pictures.does anybody know how old they are:confused:

Originally Posted by susie123 (Post 1044873)

Interesting to find three different types on the one beach. We were at Silverdale at the top end of Morecambe Bay a few years ago and found loads of 18th century china sherds. I used to be an archaeologist and it was hard to not pick them up!

Here on Morecambe beach it's a bit of a desert as the town doesn't go back much before 1850. There are one or two interesting finds though...

BBC News - Rare whale vomit found on Morecambe beach

Originally Posted by jaysay (Post 1044892)

Never realised Morecambe was that bad susie:D

Originally Posted by susie123 (Post 1044873)

Interesting to find three different types on the one beach. We were at Silverdale at the top end of Morecambe Bay a few years ago and found loads of 18th century china sherds. I used to be an archaeologist and it was hard to not pick them up!

Here on Morecambe beach it's a bit of a desert as the town doesn't go back much before 1850. There are one or two interesting finds though...

BBC News - Rare whale vomit found on Morecambe beach

Originally Posted by cmonstanley (Post 1045000)

there was a huge "dynamite factory" nobel peace prize fame.they employed 30,000 people at one point these bricks must have came from there as theyve came down a cliff so some must be about 1860

Originally Posted by Barrie Yates (Post 1045029)

I think you will find that Dynamite was not invented until 1867

Originally Posted by cmonstanley (Post 1045000)

there was a huge dynamite factory nobel peace prize fame.they employed 30,000 people at one point these bricks must have came from there as theyve came down a cliff so some must be about 1860

Originally Posted by MargaretR (Post 1045037)

"The prevailing academic consensus is that gunpowder was formulated in the 9th century by Chinese alchemists" - wikipedia

Originally Posted by churchfcrules (Post 1045206)

looks like Nori werent the only ones to "misspell", saw this today so got a pic for you all