Our History
In 1915, the firm D.J. Pancake and Son’s was founded by Daniel J. Pancake, a part-time minister and sewing machine salesman, after he was paid a finder’s fee for introducing a buyer to a seller on a piece of Huntington Property.
Huntington was then only 44 years old, a vibrant and growing city with a bustling river front, railroads and city streets. As the energetic Jewel City grew and blossomed so did the Pancake firm.
In 1925, Paul C. Pancake, Sr., a U.S. Navy veteran of World War I joined the firm full-time with his father D.J., his brother John and his Uncle, J. Bert Schroeder. At that time the firm was located in the Miller Building in the 400 block of 9th Street in downtown.
During the Depression of the 1930’s the firm, now under the guidance of Paul Pancake, Sr. after the death of Daniel in 1928, relocated to the Kelly-Hatfield building in the 700 block of 4th Avenue in downtown. While the Depression took its toll on many fine businesses across the country the Pancake firm found ways to survive in those very lean times. In 1933, Pancake Realty Co. Inc. succeeded D.J. Pancake and Sons.
In 1940, the firm moved to the offices it occupies today at 915 5th Avenue in downtown Huntington.
Much of the interior of the office from the terrazzo floors to the custom wood office partitions remains the same today.
The building boom following World War II fueled more growth across the market and found the company adding mortgage loan and property insurance operations to its menu of services.
In 1959, Paul C. Pancake, Jr. joined the firm after completing his services in the U.S. Army. In 1963, Paul, Jr. (as he was known) and K. Ross Lutz took over the reigns of the company upon the retirement of Paul, Sr.
In 1971, Paul Pancake, Jr. took sole control of the company and remained as President until his death in 1997.
In 1986, the firm made the decision to affiliate with the Coldwell Banker organization and became known as Coldwell Banker Pancake Realty Company. The familiar red diamond logo that dated from the companies’ beginnings was replaced by the blue and white Coldwell Banker logo.
In 1997, P.C. Pancake took over company operations and became the 4th generation of the Pancake family to run the business.
In 2007, after 20 years of affiliation, the decision was made to discontinue the relationship with Coldwell Banker and bring back the famous “red diamond” logo. In making the decision to return to our roots we believed we would be better positioned to serve our marketplace as the challenges of the future present themselves.
Now, in 2024, our 109th year in the business, we continue to offer high quality counsel and representation to our clients. While much has changed in the world of real estate over our many years of service, we remain committed to our decades-long tradition of placing the interests of our clients first and foremost. After all, that is one thing that hasn’t changed in 109 years!
