In the years following WW II, the secret of Albuquerque was out. The city’s blue skies, mild climate, and laid back culture attracted people from the world over. By 1960, Albuquerque’s population had grown to over 200,000. Infrastructure was growing at a frantic pace and with that came schools, shopping centers, buildings and homes.

​In 1959, Weldon Hunter saw an opportunity to provide quality building materials and exceptional service to the rapidly growing community and opened Hunter Lumber at the northwest corner of Menaul and San Pablo. Business was good and steadily grew to the point that a larger space was needed to serve Albuquerque and New Mexico. In 1971 Hunter Lumber moved across San Pablo to its present location. True to his vision of exceptional service, Mr. Hunter could be found cutting material in the saw room, loading trucks with a forklift, making deliveries, and of course, waiting on customers at the counter. Whatever the customers’ needs-from truckloads of plywood for the commercial builders to the homeowner looking for a single screw for the toaster, Mr. Hunter believed each was important.

​1971 was the year that Ken Bower, an energetic young man with an extraordinary work ethic, began to work at the lumber yard part time while attending UNM. Ken saw Mr. Hunter’s example of customer service and integrity firsthand. Learning the business from the bottom up, Ken swept the warehouse, stacked lumber in the “bins,” loaded and unloaded trucks and made deliveries.

He decided to make Hunter Lumber his career and went full time a few years later. The ensuing years saw him take on more responsibility and in 1980, Ken was promoted to General Manager.

Ken’s son Robert began to work part time at the lumber yard in 1995. With much of the same work ethic and determination of his father, Robert also started working in the “yard” performing the often unglamorous tasks that keep the business running, earning more responsibility, and like his father, learning the details of the business. Upon graduation from UNM, Robert came to work full time at Hunter Lumber in 2006.

After 51 years, Weldon Hunter sold the business to Ken Bower and in 2010, Hunter Bower Lumber was created. Much has changed in the 57 years the lumber yard has been in business. Competition from giant national and multi-national corporations, shifts in the local construction market and economic downturns have made it difficult for the small business to remain in operation. Ken, Robert,  and their staff work hard daily to keep the local, family owned business operating and to see that Mr. Hunter’s vision of quality materials, integrity, and exceptional service – from builders to homeowners – continues to this day.