The History of Doug Andrus Distributing

Description

In 1937 the Golden Gate Bridge had just opened, a new house cost about four thousand dollars, and Doug Andrus Sr. took out a twenty-five dollar bank loan to start a transport business — mostly so he could employ his brother-in-law.

The operation was one truck, one employee, and one route, hauling to the Blind Bull coal mine in western Wyoming over dirt and gravel roads. The office was Doug Sr.'s small house on 4th Street in Idaho Falls. A second truck followed in 1939, a heavy-duty Diamond T, running loads between Idaho and Utah. The company moved to West Broadway in 1949 and kept growing. Then the sixties nearly ended it — Doug lost all of his drivers. He kept working anyway, and by the seventies the business was booming again, helped by people like Virgil Baldwin, hired in 1976 and still with the company at the time of filming.

Doug Sr. retired in the mid-seventies and sold to his sons, Doug Jr. and Heber. They took it from 24 trucks to 50, to 150, to roughly 275 today with nearly 400 employees. Those drivers cover about 29 million miles a year across the United States and Western Canada. Forty-four have half a million safe miles, sixty-nine have a million or more, and one — Robbie Howell — has driven far enough to circle the earth more than 200 times.

The freight has stayed stubbornly varied: potatoes, road salt, vehicles, bees, basketball courts, lumber, steel. See what the fleet runs now, read the fuller company history, or meet the people driving it today.

Video Transcript

Here's a short history of Doug Andrus Distributing — a family company born and raised right here in southeast Idaho.

Let's take you back to the beginning. The year was 1937. The Golden Gate Bridge had just opened, the average cost of a new house was four thousand dollars, and Doug Andrus Sr. started a transport business to employ his brother-in-law on a twenty-five dollar bank loan.

From the beginning, Doug's philosophy has always been simple: treat people right and they will stay.

Our operation started small. There was one one-and-a-half ton truck, one employee, and one route — to the Blind Bull coal mine in western Wyoming. The roads were dirt and gravel only. The office was Doug Sr.'s small house on 4th Street in Idaho Falls. Quaint.

In 1939 Doug purchased his second truck, a heavy-duty Diamond T. He began running loads from Idaho to Utah and back to Idaho. Back and forth, back and forth — you get the picture. This is when our company started to grow.

In 1949 we moved to 1820 West Broadway in Idaho Falls and the business continued to grow as Doug amassed trucks and trailers. Hard times came in the sixties and Doug lost all of his drivers. But determined and resolute, he kept working to build Doug Andrus Distributing, and by the seventies the business was booming again — especially with the help of hard-working people like Virgil Baldwin. Virgil was hired in 1976. He's still with the company.

Doug Sr. retired in the mid-seventies and sold the business to his sons, Doug Jr. and Heber. Over the next few decades they helped Doug Andrus Distributing grow from 24 trucks to 50 trucks to 150 trucks, all the way to today with 275 trucks in operation, and almost 400 hard-working employees.

Our drivers cover 29 million miles a year all across the United States and Western Canada. At Doug Andrus Distributing, 44 of our drivers have half a million safe miles and 69 drivers have a million or more. We even have a driver who's driven over five million miles — enough to drive around the circumference of the earth over 200 times.

Doug Andrus Distributing will continue to haul potatoes, road salt, vehicles, bees, basketball courts, lumber, steel, and everything else until they don't need to be hauled anymore. And like our friend Virgil, we're staying right here. We are Doug Andrus Distributing, and we are in it for the long haul.

Frequently Asked Questions

When was Doug Andrus Distributing founded?
1937, in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Doug Andrus Sr. started it with a twenty-five dollar bank loan, one truck, one employee, and a single route to the Blind Bull coal mine in western Wyoming.

Is Doug Andrus still family-owned?
Yes. Doug Sr. sold to his sons Doug Jr. and Heber in the mid-1970s, and the company is now in its third generation of family leadership.

How large is the company today?
Roughly 275 trucks and nearly 400 employees, covering about 29 million miles a year across the United States and Western Canada.

What was the company's first route?
Idaho Falls to the Blind Bull coal mine in western Wyoming, on dirt and gravel roads, in a one-and-a-half ton truck.

How many Doug Andrus drivers have a million safe miles?
Sixty-nine drivers have a million or more, and forty-four have crossed half a million. One driver has passed five million.