ABSTRACT
Brick masonry has been used across the world as a popular building material for thousands of years. This popular and universal building material characterizes historic cities within New England, such as Boston, as well as many other cities and countries across the world. Historic masonry buildings often require localized replacement of historic brick that are damaged. To maintain the historic character and appearance of the existing brick masonry, finding a blend of brick that matches aesthetically is key. However, this is not always easy, as historic brick were manufactured using techniques that are far less common or nonexistent today. This paper discusses brick manufacturing and considerations for replacement brick and draws on several case studies to discuss strategies for matching the technical and aesthetic properties of localized new replacement brick to existing historic brick in repair and restoration projects for historic buildings.
