scarce 19th century red semi-glazed ornamental terra cotta salesman sample brick manufactured by true, brunkhorst & co., the north-western terra-cotta works of chicago, il. the name "northwestern" had its inception in 1877, when the firm true, brunkhorst & co. was organized. the five founding members were john brunkhorst, gustav hottinger, henry rohkam, john tank and john r. true. true, brunkhorst & company continued to do business as the north-western terra-cotta works of chicago until 1887, when it was officially incorporated as the northwestern terra cotta company. by the early 1890's, when northwestern terra cotta employed approximately 500 men, annual sales approached $600,000. by 1910, its large plant at clybourn and wrightwood avenues had about 1,000 workers. the popularity of placing terra cotta moldings on building facades peaked in the 1920's, and northwestern terra cotta led the way, in chicago and around the country. around this time, the company opened plants in st. louis and denver. beginning with louis sullivan earlier in the century, prominent chicago architects like frank lloyd wright had extensive contracts with the company. included among the many landmark chicago buildings for which northwestern supplied extensive decorative moldings were the civic opera house, the chicago theater, the wrigley building, and the randolph tower. northwestern's operations in chicago declined alongside the construction industry during great depression and never returned to their 1920's levels. the company finally closed in 1965. the c. 1880's diminutive semi-glazed brick features two flanking puttis supporting a curtain. to avoid all misunderstanding semi-glazed terra-cotta is not necessarily shiny, unless especially so desired: it has a dull but smooth surface, produced by applying to its surface, before burning, a solution of fine clay, with some additional "mixtures." the solutions were applied by special machines, forming a coat so thin that even the most delicate ornament loses nothing of its sharpness by the semi-glaze, as is clearly shown by miniature samples sent free to clients. the brick has a nicely aged surface patina. the deeply embossed ornament remains in great condition, considering age.