MEC Research · August 2026
Some of the Oldest Contractors Serving the Fox Valley
MEC's current research includes Fox Valley contractors with documented operating histories reaching back more than a century. This cross-trade list highlights long-running businesses serving Appleton, Neenah, Menasha, Oshkosh, and nearby communities.
Longest history in this list
116 years
Businesses compared
15
Research snapshot
August 2026
What this list means
This is not a claim that these are the only old contractors in Northeast Wisconsin, or the fifteen oldest businesses ever to operate here. It is a curated look at long-running companies in MEC's current researched directory where the operating-history evidence and Fox Valley service connection are strong enough to compare. National or regional brands can also be excluded when a reported age appears to describe the broader brand rather than the local operation.
Age shown in the table is calculated against 2026 when MEC has a clear founding or “since” year. Where no exact year is recorded, the current MEC years-in-business figure is used.
See how MEC verifies contractor history| Contractor | Trade | Base | Years | History note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sammons Plumbing | Plumbing | Oshkosh | 116 | Serving Oshkosh since 1910 |
| Valheat Inc. | HVAC | Appleton | 105 | Family tradition since 1921 |
| Christensen Heating & Air Conditioning | HVAC | Appleton | 105 | Serving the Fox Valley since 1921 |
| MCC, Inc. / Murphy Concrete & Construction | Concrete | Appleton | 100 | Safety, quality, and service since 1926 |
| Kurt Zentner & Sons, Inc. | HVAC | Oshkosh | 100 | Over 100 years of trusted experience |
| Security-Luebke Roofing | Roofing | Appleton | 92 | 90 years of roofing history |
| Ryf Heating & A/C, Inc. | HVAC | Winneconne | 88 | Serving the Fox Valley since 1938 |
| Drucks Plumbing & Heating | Plumbing | Neenah | 79 | Serving the Fox Cities since 1947 |
| Schmalz Custom Landscaping, Inc. | Landscaping | Appleton | 77 | Since 1949 |
| Vande Hey Company | Landscaping | Appleton | 76 | Started in 1950 |
| Harold Carpenter Overhead Doors | Garage Doors | Oshkosh | 72 | Providing garage door service since 1954 |
| Tri City Glass & Door | Window & Door | Appleton / Green Bay | 66 | Family and employee owned since 1960 |
| Watters Plumbing | Plumbing | Menasha | 66 | Trusted since 1960 |
| Suburban Electric / Suburban Enterprises | Electrical | Appleton | 66 | More than six decades of electrical experience |
| Motto & Sons Roofing & Construction | Roofing | Oshkosh | 61 | Established in 1965 |
What stands out in the Fox Valley data
The longevity is not concentrated in one trade. MEC research currently finds century-scale histories in plumbing and HVAC, while roofing, concrete, landscaping, electrical, garage doors, and glass or door work also include businesses with several decades of local history.
That matters because online reputation can favor newer companies with aggressive review collection. A longevity-focused directory can surface a different kind of signal: whether a business has remained active through decades of changing products, codes, ownership transitions, and local competition.
Longevity still is not a workmanship guarantee. MEC combines business history with public reputation and category fit rather than treating age as an automatic endorsement.
A useful distinction
Operating history is not always legal-entity age
A contractor can operate for decades and later reorganize as a new corporation or LLC. That is why MEC does not automatically replace a documented company founding year with the effective date of the current legal entity.
Read the full ranking methodology