Here’s a glamour shot for you. You’ve seen the J. Carter stamp before. The McNeilly stamp hasn’t appeared here before, though others just like it from this vicinity have. But the real reason I wanted this photo is that it just looks so aesthetic when a dusting of snow puddles inside the letters of a contractor stamp. They’re such wonderful little artifacts in all seasons.
This is from the east side of Allen Street between Kalamazoo and Marcus, next to the Neogen building.
This McNeilly stamp, on the east side of Clifford Street between Eureka and Prospect, is clearer than others I’ve seen, but only the name. The date, unfortunately, is illegible, at least until I get it in a more favorable light. It’s probably 1970s.
I can’t seem to find very much out about McNeilly Construction, the contractor that (as far as my eyes can tell) was responsible for this 1971 mark on the south side of East Kalamazoo Street between Regent and Leslie.
I notice an unusual placement of the stamp near the top rather than bottom of the slab (as seems more common).
I can find that McNeilly were located at 421 E. Maple St. The Lansing State Journal of June 15, 2004, reported that the former owner, Rolland “Barney”/”Ray” McNeilly, would be celebrating his 90th birthday on June 18. He was then living in Grand Ledge and had retired in 1986. He had moved to Lansing in 1960 and worked for Reniger Construction for a while before starting his own company. (I previously wrote about B.F. Churchill, who had also worked for Reniger, but in the 1920s.) The LSJ death notices of August 2 of the same year report that McNeilly died on July 30. I am unsure when McNeilly Construction dissolved, but it does not seem to be in business now.
Though I can’t tell you much else about McNeilly, I can tell you a bit about the address this slab is in front of, 1820 East Kalamazoo. It is currently home to the Auto Surgeon. Although they’re not my regular mechanic (I have gotten into the habit of going to the dealer for all my repairs since money got less tight for me), they are nice folks and have done some work for me before, including doing some small fixes for free.
The building was constructed in 1963, but unfortunately I’m not able to tell you who was there in 1971. My Lansing State Journal online access through my employer gives me only 1980 through 2011. The first reference to the building I can find is from 1983 when a real estate agent was advertising it for sale. On December 24, 1988, a new business notice appears for that address. To my surprise, the new business was Greg’s Bowling Supply. I was not expecting that. Sadly, Greg’s must not have lasted long. On July 28, 1990, a classified advertisement appears inviting experienced mechanics with their own tools to send resumes to 1820 E. Kalamazoo, no business name given. Afterward, classified ads for used cars at that address pop up regularly, but the name of any business located there is a mystery to me.
In 1994, the property shows up in real estate listings again, advertised as “Four bay garage, DNR approved.” Then on November 6, 1995, a new business listing appears for Dealer’s Automotive.
Meanwhile, however, the first advertisement for Auto Surgeon, Inc., shows up on October 4, 1991, but located at 615 E. Kalamazoo, the current location of another mechanic, Professional Fleet Services. Finally, the first reference I can find to the Auto Surgeon being located at 1820 East Kalamazoo is an advertisement on August 11, 1998. I moved to Lansing in June 1999, so I have only ever known them there.