Our Story

A vintage black and white photograph of a group of men standing and sitting in front of a brick building, some wearing hats and work clothes, appear to be workers or miners from early 20th century.
A grayscale sculpture bust of a man with curly hair and glasses, positioned on a surface against a dark background.
A large group of men, women, and children gathered on the ground and on wooden scaffolding in front of an under-construction brick building.

In 1879, Herbert P Cummings founded our company in Ware, Massachusetts. The company started out working on residences and churches but quickly grew, and by 1890 the company was working throughout the northeast building large industrial facilities, bridges, and hydro development projects.

During the early years, the company maintained offices in Boston, MA, Burlington and  Middlebury, VT, Woodsville, NH, Winthrop, and Portland, ME, as well as Glens Falls, NY.

By 1935 we established three divisions to concentrate on work in western Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.

“Mr. Cummings established an enviable reputation for diligence and integrity that lives on within the present organization.”
— Benjamin Harrington, Jr. (President 2004-2017)
Map of New England with many colored pushpins and arrows indicating various locations and data points, framed with a wooden border.

The company operated as a General Contractor, self-performing concrete and masonry work in addition to general carpentry through the 1970s.

During the '70s, we began working as a Construction Manager/Contractor. By the mid-1980s, approximately 50% of our workload was performed as a Construction Manager, and the percentage of our construction management work increased steadily. Although we remain active in the bidding market, over 99% of our work has recently followed a construction management form of delivery.

In 2019, we celebrated 140 years in operation. We still maintain our offices in Woodsville, NH and Barre, VT operating through a Construction Management delivery process.

Leadership through the years

Black and white photograph of a construction site with a large concrete structure, two men in suits and hats standing in front, stacking of wooden planks, and a ladder leaning against the structure.
A person wearing a hat, work apron, and work boots, working on a wooden structure with a sign that reads 'Positively No Smoking on the Premises, H.P. Cummings Co.'