75 Years of Lawrence History
For 75 years, the story of McGrew Real Estate has been intertwined with the story of Lawrence.
From creating needed housing in the early 1950s to helping shape the growth of West Lawrence, McGrew has spent generations doing more than helping people buy and sell real estate. The company and the people behind it have invested in the possibilities of this community and helped Lawrence grow into the city it is today.
1951 | Lawrence Needed Homes
And Conrad McGrew saw an opportunity to help.
Conrad “Connie” McGrew had already spent much of his life in Lawrence when he established McGrew Investment Company at 806 Massachusetts Street in 1951.
The company began with just three agents and $100,000 in first-year sales, but Conrad’s ambitions extended beyond the real estate office.
Lawrence needed housing. Conrad helped develop Park Hill, an addition south of 23rd Street that provided more than 50 new homes. The historical account describes him as one of the city’s most aggressive housing developers of the time, known for finding creative solutions when conventional approaches weren’t working.
It established a pattern that would continue at McGrew for generations: looking at what Lawrence needed next and helping make it possible.
1953 | Keeping the Vision Alive
An unexpected chapter in the McGrew story.
Conrad died suddenly in 1953 at just 48 years old.
His wife, Viola McGrew, inherited the company. With encouragement from family friend and physician Dr. Fred Isaacs and the invaluable assistance of Marjorie Doctor, Viola made the remarkable transition from supportive partner to businesswoman.
John McGrew later remembered that people trusted his mother. Together, Viola and Marjorie kept the young company operating until John joined the business in 1960.
What could have ended after only two years instead became a Lawrence institution.
1960 | Ready for What's Next
A new generation joins a changing Lawrence.
hen John McGrew joined the family business in 1960, McGrew Investment Company was still a decidedly small operation.
After graduating from the University of Kansas with a degree in business administration, John came to work alongside his mother, Viola, and Marjorie Doctor. The office at 806 Massachusetts reflected a very different era of real estate. John remembered a desk, a telephone, probably one typewriter and an electric adding machine. Copies were made with carbon paper, and nearly everything was done by hand.
John quickly discovered that real estate suited him. He enjoyed meeting people, putting deals together and, especially, the possibilities that came with development.
That instinct would become increasingly important as Lawrence grew. John saw real estate as more than individual transactions. He was interested in bringing people and ideas together, creating opportunities and turning possibilities into something tangible.
The little office on Massachusetts Street may have been modest, but John was beginning to imagine something much bigger.
Lawrence was changing. McGrew was ready to change with it.
1960s–1976 | Changing the Map of Lawrence
A 400-acre idea helped open a new chapter in the city’s housing.
In the 1960s, John McGrew partnered with Bob Billings to develop and market what began as a 400-acre golf course project called Alvamar.
At the time, West Lawrence looked very different. John recalled selling a lot near what was then called Yankee Tank Lake for $25,000, before there was even a golf course next door. The lake would eventually become Lake Alvamar, and Alvamar and its related developments would grow to encompass more than 3,000 acres in West Lawrence.
For John, development was about more than selling land. He described himself as a catalyst, interested in breaking new ground and creating new possibilities. Looking back, he spoke proudly about helping create something that would have lasting value for the community and future generations.
As West Lawrence took shape, McGrew was growing too. The company moved to 900 Indiana in 1967, when six agents produced $800,000 in sales. A 1970 merger with Lawrence Real Estate and Insurance Company brought twelve agents together at 901 Kentucky.
By 1976, McGrew had grown to 20 agents producing $10 million in annual sales. That year, the company relocated to 1505 Kasold Drive, on what was then the western edge of Lawrence.
From a 400-acre idea to thousands of acres of development, the story of Alvamar became part of the story of Lawrence's westward growth. And McGrew’s own journey, from Massachusetts Street to Kasold Drive, reflected the changing geography of the city it was helping shape.
1986 | Putting Down Roots
A permanent home in a growing part of Lawrence.
In 1986, McGrew constructed and moved into a new building at 1501 Kasold Drive. Thirty-six agents produced $30 million in sales that year, a remarkable change from the three agents who had begun at 806 Massachusetts 35 years earlier.
The city surrounding McGrew had changed dramatically as well. What had once been the western edge of Lawrence was becoming an established part of the community. McGrew hadn’t simply witnessed Lawrence’s westward growth. Through projects like Alvamar, the company helped create the neighborhoods and development that reshaped the city.
2007 | A New Generation Takes the Lead
Building on a tradition, while looking ahead.
After 47 years leading McGrew Real Estate, John McGrew passed the chairman's role to his son, Mike McGrew, in 2007.
Mike became the fourth McGrew to serve as chairman, following Conrad, Viola and John. Having joined the company in 1982, he stepped into leadership of an organization that had grown to 65 agents and offices serving Lawrence, Eudora and Baldwin City. “We've got a great tradition here, and we just want to build on that,” Mike said at the time.
John wasn’t leaving real estate behind. He planned to remain active in property development throughout Douglas County, returning to something he had enjoyed throughout his career: creating and developing real estate.
For Mike, the challenge ahead was to preserve what generations had built while continuing to evolve. As he put it, “The world’s dynamic. You either stay with it or get out of the way.”
2008–2026 | A Tradition of Leadership
From Lawrence to the national stage, leadership continued to grow.
As McGrew entered its next generation, its influence continued to extend beyond the company itself.
In 2008, Dennis Snodgrass became President and Managing Broker, bringing decades of McGrew experience to the day-to-day leadership of the company. Mike McGrew continued as Chairman and CEO while becoming increasingly involved in leadership within the real estate industry and the Lawrence community.
Mike served nine years on the National Association of REALTORS® Board of Directors and five years on its Executive Committee. From 2014 through 2016, he served as Treasurer of the national organization. He also served as Chairman of the Lawrence Chamber of Commerce in 2014 and as a trustee of the Douglas County Community Foundation.
John McGrew’s contributions to Lawrence continued to be recognized as well. In 2011, the Lawrence Chamber honored him with its Citizen of the Years Award. Looking back on decades spent developing Lawrence neighborhoods, John described the work as a creative process and said he had always felt they were making a positive contribution to the community. “I’ve always been a catalyst. I like to break new trail, create new possibilities. I don’t necessarily like to get involved in management, but I like to get things started. I enjoy the challenge of putting things together, getting people together, creating something that is going to be of lasting value to future generations.”
That commitment to leadership has never belonged only to a few people of McGrew.
Across generations, McGrew agents have consistently given their time and experience to the Lawrence Board of REALTORS®, serving as officers, directors, committee members and volunteers. Their involvement has helped strengthen the organization, support fellow real estate professionals and contribute to the standards and future of the profession in Lawrence.
It is another way McGrew’s 75-year history reaches beyond the walls of the company. Leadership here has long meant participating in the organizations that make both the real estate profession and the Lawrence community stronger.
