Phend & Brown Inc., was started by Harry Phend, Ronald Brown and Roy Treesh  Jan. 1, 1922. Eventually the business was managed by the third generation of Browns: Dan, Doug and Andy. On Dec. 31, 2021, Rieth-RIley Construction will take over the company. Phend & Brown employees will remain and the company will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Rieth-RIley Construction, which is over 100 years old. InkFreeNews photo by Deb Patterson.

By Deb Patterson
InkFreeNews

MILFORD — A 100-year-old business in Milford and operated by three generations has been sold.

Phend & Brown Inc., which started in Milford Jan. 1, 1922, was acquired by Rieth-Riley Construction Inc. Dec. 15. The official transfer of ownership will take place Dec. 31.

According to Andy Brown, secretary/treasurer, of Phend & Brown, the local company will carry on the way it has and all employees will remain. “We will be a wholly owned subsidiary of Rieth-Riley,” he stated.

“After careful consideration, our family decided to consolidate with this highly respected company that emphasizes the same qualities that we have always emphasized — honesty, integrity, quality, safety, sound execution, reliability and superior customer service. Our cultures are very much aligned,” explained Dan Brown, Phend & Brown president. “We are joining two of the oldest and most reputable companies in the area. Even better yet, we are now a part of the only company in our industry and in our market area that is 100% employee owned which provides a family feel as we embark on our next century.”

Andy Brown further stated the trend since fall has been larger corporations have been acquiring smaller companies. “It’s going on in the industry,” he stated, adding he knows of three larger companies who have done such acquisitions. “It’s the way the market is.

“It was inevitable,” he stated, noting there is not a fourth generation to take over the business. “The timing was right,” stressing no one is ill or moving away in the Brown family.

The new acquisition further strengthens Rieth-Riley’s operations in north central Indiana. The joining of these two long-standing and compatible companies will provide continuity of the same high quality work and customer service their customers have come to expect.

Phend & Brown had its beginning in Milford in 1922 when a partnership was formed by Harry Phend, Ronald Brown and Roy Treesh for the purpose of building gravel roads in northern Indiana counties. At that time roads were built using horse-drawn “slip scoops,” and a man and a team of horses could be hired for $5 for a 10-hour day.

After 1924, the company continued to grow as a partnership between Phend & Brown. The company expanded into state highway work in 1930 when it was awarded a contract for 10 miles of US 31 from LaPaz to South Bend. A number of state and county projects were built by the firm during the ‘30s and ‘40s including several bridges. During this time, the firm was joined by the two partners’ sons, Parker Phend and Robert Brown.

Asphalt work was added to the company’s line in 1952 with the purchase of one of the first portable “continuous mix” asphalt plants to be put to work in Indiana. With this new equipment the company was able to win a number of asphalt road contracts within the state from Indianapolis north. At the same time, the company’s fleet of earthmovers and bulldozers were kept busy grading on road and airport projects in the same general area.

With the death of Parker Phend in 1965, the company became completely owned by the Brown family. Robert Brown, second generation owner and company president, was joined in the business by three sons, Dan, Doug and Andy. With the help of a number of skilled and experienced longtime employees, the growth of the company moved continuing steadily into the third generation of owners.

Robert Brown semi-retired as president of the company in 1995, but continued to stop by the office on a daily basis, never fully retiring until his death July 16, 2017. His sons took over the operations.

Phend & Brown is a general heavy and highway construction company contracting for public highway, street and road construction and reconstruction, as well as infrastructure for private commercial and residential development. Earthmoving, asphalt and concrete pavement, drainage, sewer and water are self-performed throughout northern Indiana.

The local company owns two asphalt plants, Leesburg Asphalt Plant, 76 W. 600N; and Disko Asphalt Plant, 3394 S. 1600E, Silver Lake. They also own Leesburg Sand and Gravel at 27 W. 600N.

Rieth-Riley was founded in 1916 by Albert R. Rieth and George Riley, and is a 100% employee-owned, heavy and highway construction company with 29 permanent and portable asphalt plants, several portable concrete plants and multiple related material supply resources located throughout Indiana and Michigan. Rieth-Riley specializes in public, municipal and private infrastructure construction.