Charles, Gary & Ron Palmer....
From Father to Sons:
Charles, Gary & Ron Palmer — Builders of a Community Legacy.
From strong roots in Utah’s pioneer past, the Harman family produced generations of builders, leaders, and community stewards. George Reece Harman and his wife, Caroline Hemenway Harman, were among the good and grounded families who shaped the Granger area through faith, work, and family life. Their daughter, Caroline Mignon Harman Palmer, inherited their quiet strength and dedication to community. She married Charles R. Palmer, a hardworking builder and farmer whose vision helped transform wide open farmland into thriving neighborhoods.
Charles was among the original construction crew that built the first 100 homes in Kearns, Utah. A skilled craftsman with a deep love for the land and his trade, Charles helped usher in an era of rapid growth while keeping integrity at the heart of his work. Together with Caroline Mignon, they raised a family that would leave a lasting mark on Granger.
Their sons, Ron Palmer and Gary Palmer, grew up with the smell of sawdust in their nostrils and hammers in hand. From an early age, they were determined to follow in their father's footsteps—and they did, with resounding success. As co-founders of HR Builders, Ron and Gary Palmer became two of the most prolific and respected homebuilders in the region.
Their journey began humbly. “We started on a shoestring,” Ron recalled. In the early days, their wives kept the books, and neither brother had an employee on payroll. But their skill and work ethic carried them forward. By the 1970s and 80s, the Palmers had built thousands of homes in Granger alone—at one point accounting for one in every ten homes in the area.
Their construction signature was simple: brick veneer homes with full basements—solid, honest, and built to last. “We live in Granger,” they said, “and we want to be able to face the people we’ve built for and hold our heads high.”
Their developments included entire neighborhoods of homes, the Village Green Apartments, and the elegant Stonehedge Adult Apartment Community, built on the east side of the Salt Lake Valley on formerly waterlogged land transformed into a series of ponds and fountains. The Palmers even reversed the national trend of converting apartments into condos—turning a 20-unit condo development into a thriving rental community of 150 units, with full occupancy from day one.
Gary, and Ron Palmer were known not just for the homes they built, but for the values they lived by. With unwavering integrity, a tireless work ethic, and deep roots in community service, they earned the trust of Granger families one brick at a time. Their buildings stood strong because their character did—honest, dependable, and devoted to doing things the right way.
Beyond construction, the Palmer brothers were community builders in every sense. Ron Palmer served as bishop of the Taylorsville 12th Ward and was a member of the Board of Home Builders of Greater Salt Lake. Gary Palmer served for eight years on the Salt Lake County Planning Commission, including two years as chairman, and was first counselor in the Granger Central Stake Presidency.
They built not just homes, but hope. Through land development, design, management, and service, the Palmer family lived the values passed down by their parents and grandparents—building up Granger and West Valley City with faith, humility, and grit.
The legacy of George and Caroline Harman, their daughter Caroline Mignon, and the Palmer family endures in brick, family bonds, and neighborhoods that still stand strong today.
