Silcock first started making pots in May 1879. He was an employee of the brickworks but after a few trial runs and a show to the owners of his pottery talents he found that "The shareholders were so pleased with them that they asked me to get some more clay ready of a better kind and make a many more".
The potters then were first put to work in the area when it was determined that the clay was suitable for brick manufacture. Ian Evans, in his beautifully illustrated history of the pottery puts 1876 as the year the brickworks began. Pipe making was ready to go by October 1877 and began under the auspices of the Lithgow Valley Colliery Co with the first pipes not appearing until March 1878, with a distinctive kangaroo emblem. So confident was the area in the quality of its bricks and pipes that it took part in the Sydney International Exhibition of 1879.