M.S. Johnston Co. Inc. of Hagerstown is marking its 64th year as a dealer for York International Corp., which makes M.S. Johnston the longest-tenured York dealer in the world.
M.S. Johnston Co. began as a household refrigeration service business in the basement of founder Maurice S. Johnston's home in Hagerstown in 1932. On Dec. 27, 1940, M.S. Johnston signed up with York Ice Machinery Corp. as what then was referred to as a "contracting distributor."
In the mid-1950s, M.S. Johnston changed from a York contracting distributor to a York dealer, and Aircon Engineering of Cumberland, Md., became its distributor.
M.S. Johnston's original work force consisted of two men serving the household refrigeration service needs of residents in Hagerstown. Today, the business has 48 full-time employees who serve the HVAC, sheet metal, design-build and refrigeration needs of customers in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia.
