In 1923 Thomas A. Donlin (Pictured Above) bought Peter Foltmer's interest in the Foltmer-Johnson Company and engaged in a partnership with Carl A. Johnson. At that time the business was located in the downtown district of St. Cloud at 108 Sixth Avenue South.

The Company began operations with 7 employees in a modest shop specializing in millwork and similar services to building supply dealers and builders. The firm manufactured everything it sold - windows, doors, cabinets and moulding - all from raw lumber.

In 1928 construction is completed on the Company's new location at 535 East St. Germain Street. (Pictured Below) The new plant contained 46,000 square feet of office and work space. The company invested in new machinery, which included the installation of a dry kiln. They also installed a fan system that was piped over the entire building which carried shavings and other waste directly to the furnace. This system was considered a real innovation since it was the first of its kind in St. Cloud. At this time, 26 men were employed.

In 1941 during World War II, the company survived by manufacturing items for the defense industry such as ammunition boxes and watch cases.

In 1946 Carl A. Johnson retired and Thomas A. Donlin (Pictured above) bought his share of the business and incorporated the firm as The Donlin Company. In order to meet the demand for housing after the war years it added from other manufacturers semifinished and finished products to sell. At approximately the same time, the decision was made to begin sales on a "formal" basis to lumber yards (dealers) while continuing to quote and sell contractors on a direct basis. This was the beginning of what is now known as the "Wholesale Division". This decision was significant in that it positioned the Company in "two step" distribution. The Company sold mainly stock millwork to retail lumber dealers and retained its presence in architectural millwork through quotations to general contractors for custom items.

In 1968 The Donlin Company purchased the Stemm Building (Pictured Below) located at 539 East St. Germain. This building was originally built by International Harvestor in 1929. The building has more than 60,000 square feet of floor space. The Donlin offices were moved to the second floor of the building while General Tire Company continued to occupy a portion of the lower level. The remainder of the building was used for warehouse/inventory space.

In 1973 there was divergence in which direction the Company should channel its limited resources - Wholesale or Architectural. Earnings are not supporting the demands placed on the need for equipment and inventory. The decision was made to withdraw from the architectural market and cease manufacturing custom millwork. In addition, contractor sales are terminated in order to concentrate on sales to the lumber dealer.

During the late 70's, the company made the decision to have windows as the the primary product with doors and moulding to follow. We continued to manufacture our own double-hung style of window but still representing other window manufacturers.

In 1992 the Company decided to discontinue sales of commodity building materials and focus efforts on our core millwork business.

Presently The Donlin Company continues to provide quality products and excellent service to Lumber Dealers throughout the state of Minnesota.

On a hot and steamy weekend in mid July 2005 The Donlin Company Moved into a new 101,000 square foot state of the art facility, located just east of St.Cloud in the Airport Industrial Park.

DCO STAFF IS READY TO SERVE YOUR NEEDS!

President Tim Donlin & Retired President Larry Donlin

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