Wagner Roofing Celebrates Its Centennial With A Beautifully Illustrated Book Showcasing Craftsmanship Through The Years
Since its earliest days, Washington, D.C., has attracted architects, designers, builders, art collectors, entrepreneurs, and politicians from all over the world. They loved the excitement of the city and the chance to design and build something special in the capital city.
These figures include Major Pierre Charles L’Enfant, who developed the plan for the city in 1791 for President George Washington, Stanford White who designed The Washington Club/The Patterson Mansion in 1903, and James Hoban and Benjamin Henry Latrobe who designed the White House in 1792 and noted landscape architect, Frederick Law Olmstead who helped design the National Zoo in 1889.
Not all of the buildings designed and built during the early years of Washington, D.C., have been preserved, but more than 500 survive and are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including 74 National Historic Landmarks of the United States. Fifty-seven Washington, D.C., sites are featured in this book. This book showcases a unique craft, roofing and sheet metal, and its importance in preserving these treasures. Wagner Roofing has been dedicated to promoting and protecting this important craft for the past one hundred years, and the company has played a significant role in restoring and replacing the roofs and other sheet metal work of such historic landmarks as The National Cathedral, the Smithsonian Castle, Woodlawn Plantation, Lincoln’s Summer Cottage, US Department of the Treasury, The Old Post Office, and more.
This book documents the beauty and variety of the buildings of Washington, D.C., through hundreds of beautiful color photographs, most taken by Chuck Wagner, Wagner Roofing’s current CEO, and demonstrates the key role the company has played in maintaining these landmarks for new generations.
This beautiful publication chronicles only a small part of Wagner Roofing’s accomplishments and their impact on the history and preservation of Washington. Wagner’s work has touched all parts of the city and has resulted in the preservation of not only the fabric of our streets and neighborhoods, but the preservation of roofing crafts.
– Mary Oehrlein
There are two equally remarkable things about Wagner Roofing: first, the quality of their work on the most challenging roofs in Washington; and second, their survival as a family-run business for 100 years. But the Wagners have managed to do it and thrive. And our cityscape is richer for it.
Knight Kiplinger
Wagner Roofing looks at roofs in a whole new way: they are works of art, each one unique, each one offering new challenges, each one requiring incredible skill and attention to detail. Whether it’s a roof on the Naval Academy, or the U.S. Capitol, or the Rotunda at the University of Virginia, Wagner’s artistry is as obvious as the roof’s elegance.
William A. Good
Charles “Chuck” Wagner served as the Chief Executive Officer and Owner of Wagner Roofing Company up until 2015 when he sold his family company to current President, Dean Jagusch and his family. Established in 1914 by Chuck’s grandfather, Otto Wagner, Wagner Roofing remains a family-owned company which celebrated 100 years in business in 2014. Chuck also served on several boards, including the District of Columbia Preservation League, MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, and the Slate Roofing Contractors Association. He is a third-generation Washingtonian and a graduate of Saint John’s College High School and LaSalle University.
Sheila Wagner, former Vice President, was born in San Francisco and spent much of her childhood in the south. After graduating from school in South Carolina she headed for Washington, D.C., in 1969, where she began a career in the construction industry working for Blake Construction Company and Kettler Brothers in Gaithersburg. Sheila Wagner worked for Wagner Roofing from 1991-2015, and streamlined all aspects of the business playing an important role in keeping the company profitable. The Wagners reside in Washington, D.C. They have four daughters and seven grandchildren.
To request a copy of the book, please call us at 301-927-9030.