Our History

Humble Beginnings

1901 – A Minneapolis family, the Barretts, established Barrett Transfer & Storage and Barrett Northside at 501 West Broadway in Minneapolis. The company’s primary business was hauling coal and fuel oil with its two trucks—which sustained the family business for over 25 years.

1928 – R. E. Eidsvold bought Barrett Transfer & Storage, and decided to keep the name to retain the company’s local reputation. After the coal and oil deliveries were finished in the morning, the Barrett driver began a new task. He returned to the office, cleaned himself up, and then took the other truck out to move furniture for the rest of the day.

1941 – The business’ first expansion!  Eidsvold moved the growing moving company to North Washington Avenue in Minneapolis.

 

Interstate Highways Revolutionize the Industry, the Business Expands Again

1941-1945 – During World War II, Barrett became an agent of National Van Lines, which introduced the company to long distance moving, a business line that was expanding rapidly as the U.S. workforce became more mobile and the interstate highway systems developed.

1947 – Barrett Transfer & Storage acquired Dawn Transfer & Storage, which began in 1870 as a horse-drawn baggage dray line from the local train depot.  In this same year, both Barrett and Dawn became founding members of Atlas Van Lines, a confederation of independent movers.

1951 – Barrett celebrated its 50th anniversary! Having outgrown its headquarters for the second time, a new warehouse and office facility were built on Wayzata Boulevard in St. Louis Park. At this time, R.E. Eidsvold’s son, Robert H. Eidsvold, became president of the company.  During the move, the new President remarked that the St. Louis Park office was “the place to end all places,” and expected that the Wayzata Boulevard facility would be our permanent home.

1955 – Barrett opened a two-person booking office in Milwaukee.

1961 – Robert H. Eidsvold, Jr., the President’s son, joined the Milwaukee staff.

 

 

Expansion and Growth Characterize the Late 20th Century

1964 – The Milwaukee office moved into a newly constructed warehouse and office facility. In this same year, Barrett became an agent for United Van Lines, which enabled us to provide a superior agency network and a more efficient hauling system.

1976 – Barrett and Dawn merged and Robert H. Eidsvold, Sr., became Chairman of the Board. Joe Langer became President and Robert H. Eidsvold, Jr. became Vice President.

1979 – Alas, the St. Louis Park location served us well for almost 30 years, but we had outgrown our home again! The Minneapolis operation moved for the third time – to its present location in Eden Prairie.

1982 – The Eden Prairie location expanded once…

1987 - … and again!

1988 – Storage facilities were expanded at the Milwaukee location to accommodate increased demand for temporary and long-term storage.

1990 – Barrett Milwaukee moved into a new facility with 82,000 square feet of office and warehouse space—quite a change from the 1955 two-person booking office!

1991 – Joe Langer became Chairman of the Board, and Robert H. Eidsvold, Jr., became President, in his 30th year with the company.

1997 – Barrett purchased Boulevard Moving & Storage in Milwaukee.

 

New Services in a New Century

2000 – Barrett acquired an agency location in Northern Illinois. During this period, we also added a specialized division that transports spacecraft and related technology as we were developing our logistics division, complementing our strong office & industrial division, international moving capabilities, and strong experience in transport of medical equipment.

2005 – Robert H. Eidsvold became Chairman of the Board; his son, Steve Eidsvold, and daughter, Judi Masini, also became Directors in that year. Daughter, Linda Olson, is the Branch Controller for the Minnesota locations. Joe Langer continues to serve on the Board of Directors, and his daughter, Laura Langer, serves as Director of Marketing & Communciations.

 

Looking Forward With Pride

Our history is rich with family pride, innovation, and adaptation to the needs of our customers and the years change our needs. The family of agencies that now makes up Barrett Moving represents the best in moving for our customers, a sound financial home for our enterprises, and a dynamic working environment for our associates. We look forward to continued growth and expansion in the 21st century, and upholding the tradition of quality upon which we’ve always staked our reputation:

• Annual recognition for Safety and Loss Prevention achievements
• Three Van Operator of the Year Awards in two years and eight Customer Choice Awards
• A President's Quality Award, given to a single agent annually for the highest van line achievements
• A Lifetime Achievement Award for van operator Pat Murphy from the American Moving & Storage Association
• More than 100 Van Operator of the Month Awards
• Many Agent of the Month Awards
• Two Heart of Quality Award for customer service representatives.
• The Operations Excellence Award to Bill Johnson, Vice President and General Manager
• The Highest Sales Awards to Milwaukee Director of Sales Mike Hansen, and Director Joe Langer