​Our Story

About > Our Story
Started in 1906, John Hennes began Hennes Trucking Company with a wooden cart and a few horses. Over time, semi-tractors slowly replaced the horses and with the addition of winches and derricks, the company began to enter the heavy lifting business servicing many of Milwaukee's industries including breweries and foundries. In 1932, John Hennes sold the business to his son-in-law, Hillard "Butch" Lang and a business partner. As time went on, Hennes became the industry leader in southeastern Wisconsin for rigging, heavy hauling, boiler making, machinery moving, and also included Lang Cartage, a local trucking supplier who delivered goods to stores, factories, pharmacies, taverns, and more.

Eventually the company expanded into Zanesville, Ohio with a fleet of cement hauling trailers, and the addition of an Appleton office specializing in structural steel and power house work, both of which were later sold off as the company sought to refocus itself on it's core markets: rigging, machinery moving, and heavy hauling. Under the leadership of Butch's son, Jack Lang, the company grew extensively in the 1970s and even the downturned market of the 1980s by expanding our offerings in powerhouse work and boilermaking.