The Overmyer

The building at 15 S. Ontario was constructed for The Overmyer Company, a prominent wholesale grocery company in Toledo, Ohio during the early 20th century. The company’s president, Alfred E. (A.E.) Overmyer, was a prominent, well-to-do citizen who had begun working in the grocery business at the age of 19. Starting by opening a roadside stand, Overmyer eventually turned his business into The Overmyer Company. In 1912, Overmyer commissioned Toledo architectural firm Mills, Rhine, Bellman and Nordhoff to create a four-story warehouse for his enterprise at 15 S. Ontario. In 1917, due to the success of the business, a four-story addition was added to the building. When Overmyer retired, he passed the company and its building on to his son, Harrison M. (H.M.) Overmyer, who continued to run the wholesale grocery business until 1937. H.M. passed the warehouse and the business on to his son D.H. Overmyer, who continued to run the business, eventually expanding into a multinational company with over 350 warehouses across North America ad Europe. The MMWC continued to operate out of 15 S. Ontario while leasing space until 1963, when D.H. sold the building in order to purchase a television station in Toledo to create the Overmyer Communication Corporation.

In 1966, the building was purchased by Roberts Investment Corporation, the owners of their long-time tenant, Union Paper Company, which moved into the warehouse in 1941. The Union Paper Company changed its name to Commerce Paper in 1970. The Roberts family continued to own the building and run the paper supply company until 2016.

The firm enlisted by The Overmyer Company to design their building in 1912, Mills, Rhine, Bellmand and Nordhoff, underwent many name changes but became one of the most distinguished and oldest architectural firms in Toledo. The firm, which went under the name Bauer, Stark and Lashbrook when it closed in 1999, also designed Toledo’s downtown YMCA building, the Commodore Perry Hotel, University Hall at the University of Toledo, the Ohio Building and the Toledo Club.