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John Benner Company was founded in 1889, when John H. Benner, Sr. and his partner, Mr. Russell, opened a decorating firm in downtown Philadelphia under the name Benner & Russell. Their original office, shop, and showroom were located near 15th Street on Chestnut Street in Center City Philadelphia. From the very beginning, the company served many of Philadelphia’s most established families and estates.

In the early years, the business offered full interior decorating services, including furniture, rugs, drapery, and wallcoverings. They carried a large inventory of both domestic and imported wallpaper and provided complete interior finishes for townhomes in the city and summer homes along the Main Line, in the mountains, and along the Atlantic coast.

Around 1915, the business relocated to 2026 Samson Street in Philadelphia, shifting its focus more heavily toward painting and wallcovering services. In 1927, just before the Great Depression, John H. Benner, Sr. passed away, and John H. Benner, Jr. became the sole owner. The Great Depression hit the business hard, as it did many others, and by 1930–1931, John Jr. moved operations to his home in Clifton Heights, PA, operating a small paperhanging and painting shop with only a few employees. Through persistence and hard work, all debts were eventually repaid by 1954.

In the early 1950s, the company became involved in large-scale residential development work, including projects with major home builders such as Levitt & Sons. Starting in 1956, the company took on large production projects including painting, wallcovering, and drywall finishing in developments such as Levittown, PA, later expanding into New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, and Florida. These projects included thousands of homes as well as schools, churches, and shopping centers.

One of the company’s most demanding projects came in the early 1960s in Bowie, Maryland, where over 1,000 homes were completed in just five months. Crews were completing up to 10 homes per day at peak production — a testament to the company’s leadership, organization, and work ethic. Over the years, the company worked on projects across Laurel, MD; Fairfax, VA; Cocoa Beach, FL; and throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, managing dozens of active job sites at once.

By the 1970s, the company expanded further into drywall work and large commercial projects, maintaining full control over quality and production. This period marked a major growth phase, fueled by decades of experience, craftsmanship, and operational discipline.

Today, John Benner Company proudly continues this legacy as a multi-generation, family-owned painting and wallcovering company. While tools, materials, and techniques have evolved over the past century, our values have remained the same: craftsmanship, reliability, and pride in doing the job right.

For over 135 years, our name has stood for quality work, honest service, and long-term relationships with homeowners, builders, and businesses throughout the Philadelphia region.

John Benner Company

Painting & Paperhanging

Since1889

Our History