FINDING REMNANTS of the largest, and perhaps the only, commercial colonial brickyard on the Eastern seaboard is a testament to the historical consciousness in Anne Arundel County. Few other counties would be able to field a skilled crew to dig, salvage and catalog such a significant find on short notice.
Anne Arundel is rich with historic sites. It is not alone in Maryland in this regard. Witness the discovery last year of the "first Baltimore" on the Bush River in Harford County. Careless development practices could destroy these artifacts and the secrets they harbor.
The brickyard was recently unearthed in large part because Mollie Ridout, the property owner, wanted to ensure she wasn't building on an important site. Ms. Ridout, an official with London Town Publik House and Gardens in Edgewater, had heard her property might be the site of a massive 18th century brickyard built by colonial governor Horatio Sharpe.