"G" is for Guignard Brick Works

"G" is for Guignard Brick Works. In 1803 James Sanders Guignard began making brick along the Congaree River near Columbia. Initially, he produced brick for his own use, but later manufactured them for commercial purposes under the name Guignard Brick Works. During the Civil War, the plant fell into dis-use. In 1886 Gabriel Alexander Guignard revived the company. He mined clay from alluvial deposits along the west bank of the Congaree River. In 1956 the Guignard family sold the company to a group of local investors. Eighteen years later, it was resold and the manufacturing facility moved to a new location near Interstate 20 and U.S. Highway 1. The site of the original Guignard Brick Works on the west bank of the Congaree River became an apartment complex—though the old bee-hive firing kilns still remain.