The George Hammerlein Insurance Agency was founded in 1937 by Mr. George Hammerlein. We have been trying to learn more about the history of the agency dating back in to the 1930s and 1940s. If you know anything about the agency back then, we would love to hear from you.
George's son Bud entered the business and learned the business from his father. He took over the agency after his father no longer worked in the agency. The agency was located in downtown Cincinnati located at 7th & Race in the Central Trust Bank building. During the early 1950s, the current president's aunts worked for Mr. Hammerlein in the agency as secretaries. They were Sarah Elizabeth Garner and Willis Louise Garner. In the 1990s, Bill Helton joined the agency and over time became an owner of the agency. At that time, the agency was renamed The Hammerlein Helton Insurance Agency. Bill's son Chris joined the agency in the 1990s and learned the business from both his father and Bud Hammerlein. Upon Bud's retirement, Mr. Helton purchased the remaining portion of the agency. Upon Bill's retirement, his son Chris purchased the agency from his father.
In August of 2007, Jim Garner purchased the assets of the Hammerlein Helton Insurance Agency from Chris Helton and renamed the agency The Hammerlein Garner Insurance Agency, LLC. Jim has over 30 years of property & casualty insurance experience and had been working for an agency in Northern Kentucky. Jim learned from that agency the value of owning your own agency and wanted to provide an opportunity for his children as that agency's founder had done for his own children.
Jim's son Brian joined him from the beginning and is now an responsible for servicing commercial & personal clients of the agency.
