About Us

Hummel Industries, Inc.

Hummel Industries, Inc. is a specialty construction company comprised of two operating divisions – The David Hummel Building Company and Hummel Restoration. The David Hummel Building Company specializes in a wide variety of stone-related services while Hummel Restoration provides masonry and concrete repair and maintenance services to facility owners and managers.

Our History

Hummel Industries, Inc. enjoys a rich history, which in many ways parallels the growth of the Cincinnati area. David Hummel (1822-1894), born in Germany in 1822, served a three-year apprenticeship as a stone mason before immigrating to the United States at the age of nineteen. Arriving in the spring of 1841 via New Orleans, he eventually found work in Columbus, Ohio at the State House, then under construction. Following completion of the State House, young Hummel settled into Cincinnati’s strong Germanic population. He married in 1847 and shortly thereafter began his masonry business. The David Hummel Building Company had its first office on Plum Street in downtown Cincinnati, followed by its second location at Elder and Logan Streets. From these venues, the young company quickly earned a reputation for expert fabrication and installation of cut stone. Early influential clients of the Hummel company included Mr. Procter, Mr. Gamble and a premier brewer of his day, Christian Moerlein.

In 1888, Hummel received the contract for the largest construction project undertaken up to that time in the history of the City of Cincinnati. The city trustees accepted Hummel’s bid in the amount of $513,000.00 for the excavation and stone construction of Cincinnati’s new City Hall. Four years later the facility was dedicated and The David Hummel Building Company had come of age.

In 1895, the firm expanded, purchasing land in Rockcastle County Kentucky for the purpose of quarrying Kentucky Freestone (sandstone) for building projects. While Kentucky Freestone was used for several decades, the demand for competing Indiana Limestone became stronger following World War I. In 1925 the once bustling Rockcastle County quarry ceased operations.

As the years continued, the business eventually set-up shop on Spring Grove Avenue where the stone fabricating operations continued until the early 1960’s. Two more locations followed and the organization continued to grow, diversify and adapt to different markets conditions.

In 1975, a sister firm was formed and thus Hummel Restoration officially began operations to service the masonry and concrete maintenance needs of commercial business owners. Like the founding entity, Hummel Restoration quickly earned a reputation for quality craftsmanship and in a short period of time was completing projects in the Ohio Kentucky Indiana region. That same year, Hummel Industries, Inc. was formed as the umbrella company for the business group.

Through the years, the Hummel organization, while a leader in commercial construction, has also been involved in residential and commercial real estate development. Today, the Hummel organization is a well-designed group of specialty companies intended to serve specific construction markets. In 1997, the organization celebrated its 150th Anniversary. As stated in the Cincinnati Enquirer, AT HUMMEL, TRADITION IS ALIVE AND SO IS PROGRESS.