Founder JH Michelmann
The current Michelmann Steel Construction Company was founded in 1865 by Prussian immigrant J.H. Michelmann under the name Michelmann Boiler Company. The company produced boilers and tanks. In 1898, the company moved from its original location at 2nd & Spring to its current location at 2nd & Hampshire in Quincy, IL. In July of 1900 the company was incorporated as Michelmann Steel Construction Company, which reflected the increased emphasis on fabricated structural and miscellaneous steel. J.H. Michelmann’s son-in-law William F. Gerdes Sr. joined the company with ten years of experience at Union Iron and Foundry in ST. Louis, MO. Gerdes became President in 1923. William’s son, Clarence A. Gerdes, became President in 1952.
In the early 1960’s, a division company, originally named Mid-States Steel Builders, was formed. Today, that division company is called Mid-States Door & Hardware and sells hollow metal doors and frames, wood doors and all types of architectural hardware plus other building accessories. Clarence’s son, William F. Gerdes III, became President in 1975. And in 2006, a fifth generation member of the Michelmann family, William’s daughter Laura Gerdes Ehrhart, took over as President of The Michelmann Companies – Michelmann Steel Construction Company and Mid-States Door & Hardware.
