ONE of Wagga’s landmarks is disappearing.
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The Willis Bricks chimney is being demolished after standing over the city for 76 years.
From 1935 to 2004 more than 200 million bricks were produced by the business, the chimney was built in 1939.
The bricks can be found in primary, secondary schools across Wagga, the Civic Centre, the Civic Theatre and thousands of homes.
The business was started in 1935 by Walter Willis and his brother, third-generation brick-makers – his grandson Graeme ran the business until its closure in 2004.
The chimney which is not heritage listed has been struck by lightning and Mr Willis said it had proved problematic to maintain.
“At the time it was built, it was one of the highest structures in Wagga,” Mr Willis said.
“It’s compromised at the top, there was a brace put on it 24 years ago, but it’s since been hit by lightning,” he said.
A demolition crew from Young is reducing the chimney from the top and bringing it to a manageable level.
Mr Willis said some people had said they were sad to see the iconic structure disappear.
He said it was become part of people’s memories, like the gasworks, Cheshire Street being part of the stock route or the trucking yards loading livestock onto trains.
“We had to shovel coal from the rail wagons to get it to the brickworks,” he said.
“It wasn’t a fun job.
“Trucks opened up the market for coal and raw materials to come straight to the brickworks, just like they opened the market for other bricks.”