History - Celebrating Over 40+ Years

The year was 1965. The year President Lyndon Johnson gave his State of the Union speech proclaiming the Great Society. The United States had its first astronaut walk in space. It was the year the British continued to invade our airwaves. In Detroit, we were surrounded by the Motown sound. 1965 was a year of great promise — especially for the McCarthy family. It was the year McCarthy & Smith, Inc. was founded.

The Early Years
From day one of its now 40-plus years span, the company has been providing general contracting and construction management services. It started when F. W. (Bill) McCarthy and Henry B. Smith became partners and formed McCarthy & Smith, Inc. with an office located on Faust St. in Detroit. The union began as a friendship when the two men were employees with the Walter B. Couse Company. Bill was head estimator and Henry was lead superintendent. With the blessing of Mr. Couse, McCarthy & Smith, Inc. took on its first construction project – the Guardian Angel Camp in Holly, MI, where they constructed a new shower house.

In 1975, Bill became sole owner of the company. He prided himself on running a family construction business and treating his clients like family. He instilled in his company traits like honesty, integrity and leadership. In 1988, he moved his company to Redford. His ideals of honesty, integrity and leadership are the foundation to this family-owned business today.

McCarthy & Smith, Inc. Today
Today, Bill’s son, William T. McCarthy (Bill), is the president of the company. His daughter, Eileen is vice president. Under their leadership the firm has grown to 45 employees. As its operations expanded, its need to expand its facilities grew, too. McCarthy & Smith, Inc. moved to Farmington Hills in 2002.

“Our company experienced dramatic growth in the late 1990s due to our efforts to pursue the K-12 educational market,” says Bill Jr. “Today, we are honored to compete with major contractors and construction managers in this and other market segments.”

McCarthy & Smith’s philosophy is to provide clients with the best quality and value by implementing the construction process with a focus on personal relations, integrity, honesty and value-minded leadership. They are an experienced team of professionals who understand the construction process and know the right way to manage a construction project. They have expertise in planning, estimating, managing, bidding and constructing difficult jobs. They work tirelessly with a project’s team to ensure that the client’s goals and expectations are met.

“For over 40 years, McCarthy & Smith, Inc. has operated with the same ideals that our father had — fairness, honesty, and integrity,” says Bill. “We have also had the honor and privilege of working with excellent employees, clients, architects, contractors, and subcontractors that treat people with fairness and respect. These personal relationships have made McCarthy & Smith, Inc. a strong, successful company. We will continue to build on these principles in the years ahead.”