Rogers Transfer & Storage Company was founded in 1902 by William B. Kennan, Sr., at the corner of First and Maple Streets in Rogers. Kennan hauled all types of cargo in wooden wagons pulled by draft horses. In the 1920s the company purchased its first truck and ran a freight line to both Springfield and Joplin. At that time it also began the profitable hauling of fruit from area orchards to the local vinegar plants. During the Depression the company transported dry goods as well as coal, oil, and pipe.
Click on the photo for a larger view!
Caption: W.B. Kennan Junior (left) and Senior,
circa 1930.
Courtesy of W.B. Kennan, Jr. (Neg.
#N002232)
RTS moved to its current facility on North
Arkansas Street, formerly a feed store, in
1948, where the loading dock still retains the
wooden floors and beams from the railroad
trestles at Monte Ne. With a warehouse
expanded to 30,000 square feet, the company
helped move the first executives from
Daisy
Manufacturing’s Michigan plant to its new
plant in Rogers in the 1950s. In 1978 grandson
David Kennan took over the reins of the
company from his father William B. Kennan, Jr.
At more than 100 years old, Rogers Transfer &
Storage now offers both commercial and
individual storage options and is the oldest
North American Van Lines agent in the state.