On Nov. 26, 2002, Messick’s, of Elizabethtown, PA, had a special reason to celebrate.

Fifty years ago on that date in 1952, brothers Marlin and Merville Messick broke ground and erected a new building along Route 230, 3 mi. north of Elizabethtown, in Lancaster County, PA. It was to become Messick’s Farm Equipment.

The dealership officially opened on Feb. 1, 1953, with Marlin as the shop manager, and Merville handling both the sales and parts departments.

Two years later a full-time salesman and an additional mechanic were hired. The company prospered and in 1962 an addition was added to the existing building, housing a showroom and additional parts area.

In 1976, the Messick enterprise once again outgrew its shell, and a new 21-acre site was purchased at the present location along Route 283 at the Rheems exit, Elizabethtown. With the new facility providing 7,200 sq. ft. of shop space and 6,000 sq. ft. of showroom, Messick’s celebrated its grand opening in February 1977, exactly 25 years after it first opened its doors. Messick’s has since expanded the building twice and has built an additional warehouse.

In 1996, Messick’s opened a second facility located along Route 30 in Abbottstown, York County, PA. This was expanded in 1999, giving Messick’s more than 43,000 sq. ft. of showroom, service and storage space.

Today, Messick’s is operated by Bob and Ken Messick. They attribute much of its growth to the quality and commitment of its 70 employees, with more than 30 people in the service department with 350 years of accumulated experience, 20 people in the parts department and nine salespeople.

The firm’s parts department has many years of experience in providing customers with parts as quickly as possible. It has the latest in computer technology to help locate the hard-to-find items. Parts are shipped daily, throughout the United States. It is committed to keep customers up and running with more than $2 million in parts inventory.

To Messick’s staff, the idea of simply making a sale is secondary to its goal of providing the customer with the correct equipment to get the job done.

Messick’s is a dealer of more than 200 brands of equipment in the agriculture, lawn and garden and light industrial lines including Case, Miller Pro, New Holland, Kubota, Woods, Cub Cadet, and Stihl.

Messick’s celebrated its 50th anniversary with tours of its facilities, industry representation, a press conference and community service awards.

For more information, call 800/222-3373 or visit www.messicks.com.

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