Founder Joseph C. Welte Strikes Gold With Summit Brick & Tile
“Gold Fever” had struck Joseph C. Welte in the year of 1888. Born in 1866 in Iowa, he had grown up working on farms and at a brickyard. He had gotten the “fever” to set out west in search of his gold, bringing with him his earnings from his previous jobs. With mining claims in Cripple Creek, Colo., and Alaska along the Yukon River, he was more than determined to find his riches. After coming to the realization that neither area was going to provide his fortune for him, he moved on to Phoenix, Ariz., where he began to recoup his losses from his adventures by managing a brick plant. His distaste for extremes in weather drove him back to the milder climate of Pueblo, Colorado. Here was where he found his “gold.” In 1902, he founded his own company, Summit Brick & Tile Co.
His son, Ralph J. Welte, dedicated nearly sixty years of his life to the company from 1943 until his death in 1992. During his years at Summit he continued to expand the business with improvements in both manufacturing and marketing. Summit was one of the first brick companies to market their products outside the traditional local selling market.
Ralph’s wife, Frances R. Welte contributed to the rich history of the company by being one of the nation’s premier collectors of brick and started a brick museum inSummit’s office at 13th and Erie.
Ralph and Frances’ children, Joseph C. Welte, Thomas R. Welte, and Anne P. Henne are third generation owners of Summit. Other family members involved with the company include Edward C. Henne, Nanci J. Welte, and the fourth generation, which consists of Mark J. Welte, Matthew R. Welte, and John C. Welte.
Changes Over The Years
1902 The dry press method of making brick replaced the hand-molded soft mudbrick. The dry press brick were fired in scove kilns (rectangular kilns without crowns or tops).
1908Summit purchased Acme Brick Co., which was located where University Blvd., now crosses the FountainRiver and made brick there until 1915. The machinery was then brought to the Summit plant and used there. In 1979 this machinery was sold to a developer in Guatemala City, Guatemala, where to our knowledge it is still being used.
1916Summit purchased the National Clay Products Company in Colorado Springs, Colo.
1922The stiff mud process replaced the dry pressed method. Beehive kilns (down draft round kilns) replaced the scove kilns.
1930Summit became the second industrial plant in Colorado to use natural gas. Summit still uses natural gas as its primary fuel.
1931Summit purchased the Lakewood Brick and Tile Co. in Lakewood, Colo. This plant is still fully operational and running.
1941Machinery installed to run clay through a vacuum chamber before it was extruded. The vacuum resulted in much denser brick with greatly reduced cracking. An entire new plant that included grinding, screening, and manufacturing equipment was added.
1967A continuous or tunnel kiln replaced the beehive kilns for lowering handing costs, better fuel efficiency and more uniform brick.
1971Summit purchased the Trinidad Brick Company in Trinidad, Colo. This plant stopped production in 1978.
1974Three new buildings constructed for the grinding plant, manufacturing plant and maintenance shop. New machinery installed throughout.
1979Summit installs automatic handling machinery. The brick are now automatically stacked on the kiln cars with a machine that is controlled by a programmable controller. After drying, firing and sorting, the brick are automatically strapped with steel bands and packaged into bundles.
1983Summit’s new office building was completed featuring passive solar heat, two Russian fireplaces and 5700 square feet for the brick and ceramic tile showroom and office space.
1987Summit purchases Capco/Summit in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and expands its tile and grout lines in New Mexico and Southern Colorado through Summit Brick and Tile of New Mexico. Summit’s brick showroom in Albuquerque is also expanded.
1997 Summit expands its product line to include manufactured stone veneer.
2000 Summit opens Summit Brick Tile Stone in Denver with a newly remodeled showroom.
2002Summit celebrates its 100-Year Anniversary and updates the kilns with new, more efficient and cleaner burning burners and a pulse-fire system.
2003Summit expands its product line to include natural stone veneer.
2004Summit installs plastic strapping heads in order to improve the quality packaging bundles and to aid in the distribution of brick.
In recognition of an exemplary commitment to employee safety and health, Summit has received the OSHA Safety and Health Recognition Program (SHARP) Certification. Summit successfully participated in a comprehensive safety and health onsite consultation survey conducted by the Consultation Program at ColoradoStateUniversity.
Summit has the prestige of being the only current company in Pueblo to be certified and one of 16 companies in Colorado to earn this certification. There are approximately 600 companies nationwide that have achieved the strict requirements to be certified.
Summit currently serves many markets, specializing in dozens of types, styles, and colors of brick along with a full array of ceramic tile, stone products and glass blocks.Over the years, Summit has developed its manufacturing capabilities to serve both the architectural, commercial, and residential markets.
Everything is made from a half-inch thin brick profile to eight-inch hollow clay masonry. Summit is a leader in the industry of producing and marketing Uniwall (Loadbearing) Brick. Currently Summit has sales offices and showrooms in Pueblo, Denver and Albuquerque, N.M. With a distributor network of 103 distributors in 34 states and Canada, Summit currently ships approximately 40 percent of its production out of state. Summit also exports its thin brick to Japan.
Summit and Lakewood Brick’s total capacity is approximately 45 million brick annually. Summit has become the clay products center of Southern Colorado. Summit is proud to be partnered with artists Ken and Judith Williams.
The Williams’ sculptures and pottery are manufactured at this office at Summit and sold through Summit’s showrooms. Summit also imports and sells both domestic and imported ceramic tile, giving it the largest tile line in Southern Colorado.
Summit sells manufactured stone throughout the Colorado and New Mexico regions. Summit also sells masonry and tile tools, equipment and material produced by companies from Canada to Australia to better serve the customer, the mason and tile contractor. Summit employs approximately 70 people locally and 85 people overall.
Summit has been fortunate to be involved in projects across the United States of America. Some of these jobs include the Harvard Law Library in Cambridge, the FredHutchinsonCancerResearchCenter in Seattle, the Cook County Jail in Chicago and the Westminster Mall in Denver.
Summit has also provided the brick for the beautiful OregonConvention Center in Portland. Realizing that Pueblo (Summit’s company headquarters) deserves beautiful buildings, Summit is especially honored to be part of the architecture that is now downtown Pueblo.
It has provided brick for the PuebloConvention Center, the Sangre de Cristo Arts and ConferenceCenter, the Pueblo Community College, Colorado State University-Pueblo as well as numerous other buildings located both in the AirportIndustrial Park and downtown Pueblo.
Summit’s products have been featured in many publications for many award-winning buildings.
Masonry Design West has featured articles and showcases on the UniversityMedicalCenter, the SperryCorporationBuilding, the PueblaPark in Mexico and the Seasons Luxury Apartments at Cherry Creek.
Brick in Architecture magazine has featured the Pueblo District 60 Administration Building, the BeaUnderwoodElementary School and the Chatenay Residential Development in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Summit has also received the Excellence in Masonry for its brick on the WisconsinTelephoneCompanyBuilding and the Builder’s Choice Grand Award for its brick on the Golden Gate Commons located in San Francisco, California.
The community of Pueblo has played a positive role in Summit’s success.
The Welte family and Summit have in turn supported numerous organizations around the city such as the University of Southern Colorado, Pueblo Community College, The Sangre De Cristo Arts and Conference Center, the YMCA, the Pueblo Nature Center, the Pueblo Zoo, the El Pueblo Boys and Girls Ranch, St. John Neumann Catholic School, St. Pius X Church, and many other community groups.
