Adding Portrait to Monument

Joseph Billing began his career in the monument industry at the age of 14 in New Market, Ontario. He apprenticed under a Scottish stone cutter/memorialist for 7 years. Joseph first set up his memorial business in Morden, Mb. in 1894. From Morden, he went to Grafton, N.D., back to Ontario, finally settling in Carman, Mb. in 1920. He took over the Carman memorial business in 1922 from his uncle, Howard Patchell who had purchased it from Alec McIntyre. Joseph continued to operate Carman Granite until 1946, when his eyesight became too poor to continue. His son, Howard Billing, joined him that year and purchased the business in 1947. Howard ran the business in its original location in downtown Carman until 1975. However after being flooded 8 times in 11 years (the last being the major town flood of 1974) the vacant Carman Creamery building was purchased & moved to our present location, 1 km south of Carman. In 1984, Howard’s son, Murray purchased Carman Granite. They worked together through 1985. Thereafter, Howard remained a key consultant, mentor and historian until his passing in 2001. As the business grew, equipment improvements (1988 & 1991) and space requirements (1992) did the same. Carman Granite is now a modern, full service cemetery memorial company with 5 employees and 2 hydraulic equipped setting trucks, regularly serving an area from Winnipeg to Manitou and the U.S. border to #1 Highway. Notwithstanding our main service area, we will deliver & install or arrange for the same wherever necessary. Carman Granite has installed and/or shipped monuments & markers to every Canadian province and territory plus North Dakota & Minnesota.