Three brothers, one a printer, two were stonemasons, emigrated from Scotland. The printer apprenticed his son, Leslie Alexander Kirkpatrick to his stonemason brother. Leslie eventually migrated to Welland where he met and married widow, Beatrice (Misener) O'Brine.
In 1929, Leslie started L. A. Kirkpatrick & Son in a tiny shop in Fonthill with his then 14-year-old stepson Earle. Many a tale was told about taking potatoes and other goods in exchange for monuments in the lean years of the Great Depression. In the early years, monuments were manufactured from raw quarry slabs. Later, a new shop was built at its present location at the end of Highland Avenue next to Fonthill cemetery. In 1950, "Double Process Carving" and "Steel Shot Sandblasting" were introduced - first time in this area. This process, still used today, produces clearer, sharper lettering and designs, using no paint.
In 1964, in response to a growing demand to the west, expansion began with the opening of our Dunnville office. (Still in the same location) Subsequently, Earle's son and son-in-law joined the firm and a five-year equipment modernization program began. Later, two businesses were acquired from long-time friends and competitors in Welland and St. Catharines and a new office opened in Niagara Falls, bringing the total locations, including the manufacturing facility in Fonthill, to five.
"Monu-cad," an industry specific computer assisted design system was introduced in 1987, the first of its kind in Canada and only second in the world. This system allows us to show families exactly what they are getting before any work was done.
The new millennium saw some changes. In 2001, employee, Mike Law purchased the firm from the retiring owners. Mike has been with the company since 1994 and made the segue from labourer to facilitator to owner, quite easily. The company's name was simplified to Kirkpatrick Monuments and 2009 marks the 80th anniversary, a proud milestone.
Expanding our company in order to reach new areas has always been important to us. In 2009 a new office was opened in Fort Erie, Ontario, and in 2010 we purchased Bradfield Monuments in Simcoe, Ontario. This brings our office location total to seven.
