Inspired by Benedictine Hospitality
The story began in 1876 when two monks first made the Abbey their home and began forming the bricks of the buildings. Since then, countless men and women have offered their time, talent, and treasure to form their own “bricks” and shaping the way the Abbey is today. You’re part of that story, that tradition, that family that welcomes you back whenever you feel like coming home.
Leave a Legacy with the brick directory
Bricks have a long and storied history at Belmont Abbey College. We are famous for our “Carolina clay,” and from that clay came bricks for our church (1892-93), the monastery (1880’s-90’s), and our college buildings (1900-on). In 1900, the college had one building – aptly named the College Building. That year, fire destroyed much of the building. The students took an active role not only in firefighting, but in the reconstruction and restoration of the ravaged building. Their work was so swift that classes in the fall started on schedule.
As a continuation of this tradition, each year the new Abbey students are invited to make bricks of their own. The bricks, each imprinted with the year the student enters the College, are being stored for future building projects on campus. While our students leave their marks on the Abbey by making bricks, our alumni participate in another way. The Lowry Alumni House at Belmont Abbey College has a brick patio, with bricks inscribed by and for alumni and their loved ones.
The Brick Directory is in three parts: the database, the slideshow, and the diagrams.
- Use the database to find your brick number, and to read brick inscriptions. The database is a spreadsheet with each brick number and
inscription, along with a link to a photo of the brick. - Use the slideshow to view all the photos of the bricks. The photos are also accessible individually in the database, and can be shared across social media!
- Use the diagrams to see where your brick is, in relation to the patio as a whole. The diagrams are visualizations of the entire patio, and of each section of the patio. All bricks are numbered, and bricks with inscriptions are colored in.
If you have any questions or concerns, please email Bridgette at bridgetteconboy@bac.edu or call the Alumni Office at 704-461-6663.
“Benedictine monks take a vow of stability, a lifetime profession to a particular monastery. This commitment provides a unique base of strength and longevity on which the monastic community, and in turn, that of the greater College stands. True to this Benedictine tradition, the pioneers of Belmont Abbey sought to develop a life and character that would endure. Abbot Leo Haid believed sturdy brick buildings would express values like stability and beauty. Around these structures thrived a rich human element, composed of varied individuals, both young and old, monk and student, cleric and lay, male and (later) female, who were nurtured into a whole by scholarship, religion, strenuous effort, and the fraternity of their common life. For both the College and the Monastery, the buildings, the people, and their activities have formed a strong, enduring tradition and a lasting stability.”