The JJH Legacy
Joseph J. Henderson & Son, Inc. (JJH) has grown to become one of the largest and most well respected commercial general contracting firms in norther Illinois. The Henderson heritage has grown strong in the Chicago area especially in Lake, McHenry, DuPage, Will, Kane and Cook Counties.

JJH Through the Years

1928

Joseph J. Henderson, Founder In 1928 Joseph J. Henderson and brother-in-law Guy Lund, started a successful residential construction company, Henderson & Lund. All was going well until the Great Depression ground construction to a halt. The business did survive and, once the Depression eased, work was again plentiful until World War II. Guy Lund sold his share of the company to Joe for $369 and went to work for a defense contractor.

1950’s

Don HendersonPresident 1971-1994 Following WWII, the company, now named Joseph J. Henderson General Contractor, began adding more commercial work and Don Henderson joined the company. Throughout the 1950’s JJH remained primarily a residential contractor and focused on building relationships to spur growth. In 1956 the company name was changed to Joseph J. Henderson & Son General Contractor.

JJH’s Historic Main Office Building

In 1964, Don Henderson purchased two vacant, adjacent buildings on Grand Avenue in Gurnee and combined them into one. The buildings date back to the late 1800’s, having been a feed & seed store, a general store, post office, sheet metal company and cleaning company. After some remodeling, JJH moved into the building in 1965. In 1972, a second story was added over the office area.

1971

Don Henderson,President 1971-1994 In 1971, Don took over as president and JJH began building a significant amount of commercial work, including the first of many Abbott Laboratories jobs and its first million-dollar contract, Citizens National Bank in Waukegan. No one had more of an impact on the growth, stability, or philosophy of JJH than Don Henderson. His vision and commitment to quality, fairness, honesty and customer satisfaction laid the foundation for the company’s prosperity. Don successfully transformed a modest, residential construction company into one of the largest commercial general contractors in Lake County.

1980’s

In the 1980’s the third generation of Henderson’s joined JJH, Michael in 1981 and David in 1988. During this time JJH started undertaking water and wastewater treatment plant work which continues to be a mainstay for the company today.

1994

Michael L. Henderson, President 1994-2005 When Don retired in 1994, Mike took over as president and David became vice president.

2005

In 2005, Mike retired and David was promoted to President. David A. Henderson, President2005-Present “Moving forward we will continue to improve our skills and performance and uphold the principles that JJH was founded on: Quality, Fairness, Honesty and Excellent Customer Service.” -David A. Henderson, President

2013

Sam and Don Henderson Sam Henderson joined JJH full time in 2013 after graduating from University of Montana with his bachelors degree in engineering.  Sam is the fourth generation of Hendersons, continuing the family tradition.

The Future of JJH

One of JJH’s greatest assets is its ability to handle the growth of the company and still maintain the company’s value system: Striving to insure that its employees treat everyone with the same commitment of fairness, honesty and respect one would expect in a close-knit family. Many positive client letters and numerous awards attest to the fact that customer service and customer satisfaction have always been a hallmark of JJH.