The Beginning: 1800’s

The son of an 1840’s European immigrant who’s service as a cavalryman in the United States Civil War left him physically debilitated in his late twenties, then child J. Edward Merrick and his siblings learned the vital necessity of discipline and hard work in their required efforts to care for their mother and each other in light of their difficult circumstances. Maturing and developing to be tinners, cornice workers, and machine-hands, the teenage Merricks honed the skills of the trade which would later become a family legacy.

In 1896, 27 year old J. Edward and 29 year old brother William founded a short lived sheet metal and roofing company named Merrick Brothers, which was only in operation for a couple of years. At around the same time, in 1902 another local family with deep roots in the sheet metal industry formed their own company. Initially named Kemper Brothers, it would eventually become known as John V. Kemper & Son.

Falls City Cornice & Roofing:1900’s

Following the passing of brother William, and twelve years after the disillusion of Merrick Brothers, in the year of 1910, J. Edward Merrick and three business partners formed Falls City Cornice & Roofing Company, Inc., which specialized in industrial sheet metal, architectural sheet metal, metal roofing, slate roofing, tile roofing work and more. Shortly after it’s formation, J. Edward obtained sole ownership of the company - and upon reprising his role as President of Builder’s Exchange of Louisville in 1942 thru 1954, handed the family business over to his two sons: George, and J. W. Merrick.

The United States’ entry into the second World War saw all three of George’s living sons reporting for active duty for most of the 1940s - two of whom returned from military service. George’s two surviving sons, Fred J. Merrick, Sr. and Norman Lee Merrick, Sr. carried on the family tradition of learning the trade upon their return, and soon thereafter took over the family business in 1958.

Aquisition & New Name

In the early 1970’s, the company ventured into HVAC mechanical contracting and remained active in the field for over thirty years. In 1979, roughly 70 years into operation, once Falls City Cornice & Roofing Company, Inc., acquired the assets of John V. Kemper & Son. With this acquisition was born the name Merrick-Kemper and the outstanding reputations of two deeply rooted sheet metal and roofing companies were united.

In 1988, Fred, Sr. passed managerial responsibilities of the company on to his two sons, Fred J. Merrick, Jr. and William P. Merrick and remained an integral part of the company until his passing in November of 2018. During this period of time, Merrick-Kemper saw significant growth - topping Louisville contractors in volume of sales by the late 1990’s (https://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/stories/1999/04/12/focus3.html).

LOUDON SHEET METAL

In 2022, Merrick-Kemper became the owner and operator of Loudon Sheet Metal, a company who has specialized in HVAC and industrial sheet metal fabrication with outstanding reputation since 1957. It’s our great honor to continue in providing the same high quality of products and services that have made Loudon Sheet Metal a highly reputable name in the construction industry for over 60 years.

Fifth Generation

Specializing in industrial sheet metal, architectural sheet metal, metal wall panels, metal roofing, slate roofing, tile roofing, and more - Merrick-Kemper is now under the management of the fifth generation of the Merrick family. With nearly 120 years of history in our profession and a long standing reputation of excellence, we take great pride in our work and ability to serve our customers well. We are eager to find what the future may hold, and plan to continue as Louisville, Kentucky’s most trusted and dependable sheet metal and roofing contractor for generations to come.