Big C Lumber: a county firm that put its headquarters on this ground

1921–PRESENT · 50860 PRINCESS WAY

The oldest firm seated in Granger was not founded here, and its own history prints the distinction plainly: Big C Lumber's published account begins in 1921, when William Hass, in partnership with George Bales, purchased a lumberyard in North Liberty, in the county's west — the company's timeline also records the North Liberty Lumber and Coal Company's incorporation in 1904 and Hass's arrival in 1919, and marks the 1921 Westville yard as the beginning of the Big C story. About ten more yards followed quickly, including the yards still held at Roseland and Three Oaks, Michigan; the partners reincorporated in 1926, and circa 1935 Hass bought out Bales's interest. The years 1935–1945 diversified the house into Hass Wholesale, Hass Concrete, and Portage Realty. The name arrived in 1967 — "Big C Cashway," later shortened to Big C, applied to four lumberyards, two of which were liquidated in 1981 — and Big C Lumber Co. Inc. became the official corporate name in 1984. Roger Foley took over management and the controlling interest in 1982, and from 1985 the company grew by acquisition to the sixteen retail lumberyards it operates today across Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, still family-owned, in its fifth generation by its own account.

The Granger chapter of that course is dated three times in the company's timeline, and the three dates print in the order the company gives them, without forcing them into one event: Triangle Truss was founded at the site of the current Granger location in 1972 and lasted until 1976; the Granger facility opened in March 1981; and in February 1994 the former Triangle Truss location in Granger was repurchased, becoming — in the company's words — the hub for contractor and corporate sales. A millwork shop followed at Granger, making the site a small manufacturer as well as a yard: custom millwork and truss design are the specialties the firm's profiles carry. The Granger facility houses the company's administrative offices — its headquarters, at 50860 Princess Way — and focuses on professional contractors while welcoming retail trade. A firm founded on the county's west side in 1921 thus keeps its corporate seat on this ground: Granger did not found Big C Lumber, but Big C Lumber is, by its own account, headquartered in Granger, and the ground's building trade has been supplied from the Princess Way yard for over four decades.

Sources:

1. Big C Lumber Co., "About Us / Our Story" and "Our History" timeline (bigclumber.com), read first-hand: founding 1921 (Hass & Bales, North Liberty; Westville yard), 1904 incorporation and 1919 Hass arrival in the timeline, 1926 reincorporation, c. 1935 buyout, 1935–45 diversifications, 1967 name, 1981 liquidations, 1984 corporate name, 1982 Foley, 1985 acquisition program, Triangle Truss 1972–76, Granger facility March 1981, February 1994 repurchase, millwork shop, 16 yards, fifth generation.
2. Company profiles (ZoomInfo; SignalHire): headquarters address 50860 Princess Way, Granger, IN 46530; Granger facility houses the administrative offices.
3. Retail Review, Miller Wood Trade Publications, Nov./Dec. 2022: Big C, "located here" (Granger), acquires Delton Pole Building Supply Co. of Delton, Michigan — sixteen locations.