16
Feature
The County Times
Thursday, May 3, 2018
Burch Oil Company: Five Generations of Serving St. Mary’s County
(l to r) F. Elliott “Sonny” Burch Jr. F. Elliott Burch, Sr. and Donald B. “Buddy” Burch in front of the original Charlotte Hall location.
By Dick Myers Editor
From the very beginning it was all about family. Samuel Bernard Burch was a farmer and saw mill operator. He had two cousins in Baltimore, Thaddeus Burch and his son Joe, who owned an already successful oil company. The cousins teamed up, and as they say, “The rest is history,” 90 years of it. The date was May 21, 1928 when the Burch Oil Company of Southern Maryland opened at Oaks in Charlotte Hall on what is now Route 5. The company’s original business was distributing gasoline, kerosene and motor oil. The product came in by railroad twice a week from Baltimore. It was only three months later that Samuel’s son, F. Elliott Burch, Sr. joined his father in the business at the age of 19. The Charlotte Hall Military Academy graduate at first was a truck driver. Then, the delivery truck had three compartments, totaling 450 gallons. Unless the customer wanted the entire contents of one compartment, Elliott had to transfer the product into five-gallon containers, an arduous task. From that humble beginning, the Burch Oil company grew, while still embracing that original heating oil business. The growth included gas stations, and then convenience stores at those gas stations, and then carryout food (including Subway franchises) in those convenience stores and then standalone fast food operations. It also grew to include car washes, delivery of propane and in-home water conditioning systems. What hasn’t changed is the family. Today at 90 years of age, Burch Oil Company is the oldest continuously-operating family business in St. Mary’s County. Samuel Burch passed away in 1944 and F. Elliott Burch, Sr, took over. Elliott’s sons, F. Elliott “Sonny” Burch, Jr. and Donald “Buddy” Burch
joined the company in 1953 and 1955 respectively. Along the way Elliott took time for public service as county commissioner president from 1962 to 1970. With the passing of Elliott in 1992, Sonny became president and Buddy vice president. Buddy passed away last year. Sonny remains chairman of the board.
Today the company is run by the family’s 4th generation, Buddy’s children Joe and Donny and Sonny’s children, Sheri Burch Norris, Kelli Mattingly and Elliott Burch. Joe Burch, as president, oversees heating oil and gasoline operations. “Even as a little kid, unofficially, when it snowed, dad would have me go on the truck.” In 1972 while still in high school, he started working part-tine at the Gulf station. “pumping gas, changing motor oils.” Later he drove the TBA (tires, batteries, accessories) truck, was a salesman, oversaw the Leonardtown plant, and in the early 2000’s, he became office manager before becoming president in 2003.” I always had my hand in the fuel oil delivery and processing sides.” Norris added, that Joe was the driving force in the lubricants business. Donny Burch, VP of Operations, oversees the burner service and car washes. He started full-time in 1978, driving a TBA truck. Later he ran the car wash business and then the pump and tank department, drove a fuel oil truck and “now I am doing what I am doing.” He grew up in the business knowing, “Everyone was on call.” Kelli Mattingly oversees the Retail Department: Burch Marts, Subways, and Dairy Queen. She started in 1987 working as a cashier in a convenience store. She worked through high school and graduated from St. Mary’s College. She’s always been in the retail side of the business. Elliot Burch runs the C-Store Division. He started going along with a driver when he was 14. He began as a service mechanic and then an install helper and then in the service department for seven or eight years. Later he managed the Install Department. “All hands on,” he said in explaining how he built up the skills to become the company’s Mr. Fix-It.
An early 1920’s truck used to promote the company’s 50th anniversary.