Over 130 Years of Superior Customer Service in San Leandro, California
Larsen Lumber has been owned and operated by the Larsen family of San Leandro since 1882 when Jens Larsen, a Danish immigrant, founded it. As BART construction began in 1968, the business moved from where San Leandro BART is today, to its current location on Washington Avenue at 143rd Street. Riders on the BART line between San Leandro and Bayfair get an overview of our 2.5 acres from the west side of the train.
The business is now run by Sam Larsen (fourth generation), son of Harry Larsen, Jr., grandson of Harry Larsen, Sr., and great-grandson of Jens Larsen.
Sam was raised in San Leandro, and attended Broadmoor Preschool, Washington Elementary, Bancroft Junior High and San Leandro High. He received a finance degree from San Jose State University. Sam began running the business upon graduation and he and his family live in San Leandro. Sam's two sons, a niece and three nephews are all potential candidates for the fifth-generation to preserve the Larsen Lumber legacy.
Larsen Lumber is recognized as the fifth oldest continuous-owned lumberyard in the United States and has been successfully serving homeowners and contractors for 135 years.
So is it Larsen Bros Lumber or Larsen Lumber?
The legal name of the business has the "Bros" but Jens named it for his two sons, James and Harry, Sr., who Jens envisioned taking over the business together one day. James passed away at a young age, so Harry Sr. ran the business alone, and then passed it down to Sam's father, Harry Jr., who became the third-generation owner. In 2007, when modernizing the business identity and branding, the "Bros" was dropped for a logo redesign, website address simplicity, and of course, the fact that no brothers have run the business...yet.