1909: Thirty-four year old Farmer Laurin Lewis Johnson and his wife Zae D. began a portable sawmill operation using money Zae had saved from her teaching job. For more than 10 years, L.L. lived a nomadic lifestyle, during the late fall and winter months, moving his operation from woodlot to woodlot, initially producing a half-million feet of hardwood lumber each year for oaken railroad ties and crossing planks needed for the new railroad lines being built across Michigan.

1922: L.L. built a stationery sawmill and planing mill on N. Washington Street in Charlotte, MI to better service the growing auto industry's demand for hardwood to make car and truck bodies. By this time, the business had grown to producing over a million feet of lumber annually.

1924: As the horseless carriage put old fashioned horse power out to pasture, L.L.'s lumber mill became a year-round business, using trucks to haul logs from surrounding woodlots to the mill, then shipping finished lumber out by rail and truck.

1928: L.L. set up partnership with his son Darrel. Darrel saw the inevitable decline in the auto industry's need for lumber and decided that furniture was the key. Soon, truckloads of quality, clear-grained maple were rumbling out of the sawmill three times a week, bound for furniture factories in Grand Rapids.

1929: During the long economic drought of the Great Depression, it was not unusual for the company to take goods instead of cash for its lumber. Several REO trucks were added to the company fleet as part of this Depression-era bartering.

1941: The Company's first (of six) dry kiln was built to speed the lumber drying process. In the early days, seasoning hardwood was a long and laborious process. Once milled, lumber would be stacked and left to season in open air. Later, the lumber was then stacked in heated work areas for another lengthy time period to complete the process.

1950's: The third generation of Johnson entered the business - Darrel's three sons, Dick (1954), Bob (1956) and Ted (1958).

1960's: The 1960's saw the biggest expansion in the company's history. New machines were added to mechanize the cutting, edging, resawing, and trimming of logs.

1962: Johnson Lumber was a pioneer in the use of a guideline light allowing the operator to see precisely where the log is to be cut, substantially reducing wood waste.

This same year, a 40-foot revolving round table for sorting lumber was designed and built, using a tenth of the power needed for the conventional green chains found in most mills.

1966: The Company was formally incorporated as the L.L. Johnson Lumber Mfg. Co.

1970: A computerized log carriage was installed in the sawmill. An operator can, through computer commands, tell the carriage exactly where the cut should be made. A more uniform product was the result.

The same year, the company began issuing catalogs for schools and woodworking shops as an outlet for cabinet-making supplies.

1975: The Company's first retail outlet, Johnson's Workbench, was established in Charlotte MI. A second store was added in South Bend IN in 1980, with a third in Grand Rapids MI in 1997.

1977: Fourth generation Johnson's began entering the business with Dick's son Mark, and then Bob's son Steve two years later in 1979. Ted's son Mike joined the Company in 1981. Dick's youngest son, Tim joined in 1984.

Ted and Mark collaborated to undertake a major renovation of the main plant that included a new roof, raised pipe system, new sprinkler system, new wiring, new blower system, and a catwalk for plant tours.

1978: The business offices, and later the Workbench stores were computerized for tracking inventories and pricing. Steve Johnson was instrumental in the installation and programing of the computers.

1985: Dick and Ted became the owners of the Company.

1991: The Company organized their first Wood Expo, featuring Scott Phillips, of The American Woodshop television show on PBS. The yearly event expanded to our South Bend IN (Wood Showcase), and Grand Rapids MI (Wood Fair) locations.

1997: A company website was developed (theworkbench.com) which helped to double the company's earnings. The company began serving customers worldwide.

2000: Two new warehouses were built to increase the company's capacity for lumber and plywood storage.

2004: The Company expanded their services offerings to include pallet heat treating for customers using wood crates and wood shipping containers for international shipments.

2006: Johnson's Workbench became a Rockler Partner Affiliate, offering an extensive Specialty Hardware product line.

2008: Mark and Tim bought out Dick and Ted to become the new owners.

2008: Workbench Express (workbenchexpress.com), our online retail store, was developed by a fifth generation Johnson -- Tim's son, Vaughn.