Reinforced interlocking building block

Claim 1

An interlocking reinforced building block comprising: a substantially rectangularly shaped block comprised essentially of cementitious material; at least one metal reinforcing member embedded within said cementitious material, said reinforcing member extending substantially the entire height and the entire length of said block of cementitious material; one end of said reinforcing member extending past one end of said block and terminating in an elongated, headed tongue of substantially T-cross section, said tongue extending substantially the entire height of said block, the other end of said reinforcing member terminating in an elongated groove of substantially rectangular cross section, said groove extending substantially the entire height of said block and including a slotted opening running substantially vertically adjacent the other end of said block, said groove having an opening at the top and bottom thereof, the opening at the top being smaller than the cross section of said groove and being only slightly larger than is needed to allow the tongue of a similarly constructed block to pass vertically through, and said tongue and groove being constructed so that the tongue of one block can be slid vertically into the groove of a similarly constructed block and wherein the two blocks may have limited longitudinal and pivotal movement with respect to each other while said tongue and groove are engaged.