Legg Lumber’s first location has been in continuous operation as a lumber yard and hard goods store since before 1837. The lumber yard is located on the first two plots of what was then the new village of Lyon and soon after became to be Coldwater. Over the years, the company had a number of owners and suffered from multiple fires. The store building burned first during the “The Great Chicago Fire”. Because there were so many fires during that time, Coldwater mandated all buildings be built in brick. A two-story brick building was built to replace the fire damaged store building and it lasted over a hundred years when it then burned again.
The Legg family started its legacy in 1884 when Moses Smith and Mary Legg purchased the lumber yard from Z.T. Merrill and E.D. Chapman. Moses Smith operated the lumberyard and retained E.D Chapman’s name until he sold the business to Mary’s younger brother, Edward, who renamed the business to The Legg Lumber Company.