It’s hard to imagine driving through any town without passing a few conveniently-located storage facilities. But where did this business category begin, and how did it become the 38-billion-dollar industry it is today? Here’s a brief journey through the surprising history of self-storage.  

An Overview of the History of Self-Storage

The Early Pioneers

While there is some room for debate on the inception of self-storage — and the concept can be traced in some ways to Ancient China — many cite the 1891 emergence of a small business in Omaha, Nebraska known as Bekins Company. This company’s founders, brothers Martin and Josh Bekins, transported goods for Americans moving out West during the period. In just a little over 10 years, they grew from 12 employees with horse-drawn wagons to a series of steel-and-concrete buildings located in Los Angeles.

Self-Storage as We Know It

Bekins Company continued to expand after World War II, but the modern storage facilities we're familiar with didn’t start cropping up until the 1960s. The colorfully-named A-1 U-Store-It-U-Lock-It-U-Carry-the-Key of Odessa, Texas raised its roll-up doors in 1964 and marketed itself as a place for oilmen to store their gear. The facility closed thanks to a tumultuous oil industry, but the '90s and early '00s saw exponential growth in demand for space, which brings us to today. That original location was even renovated and reopened back in 2013. 

Today's self-storage numbers are staggering, with over 2.3 billion square feet of storage space available in the United States alone. According to Patrick Sisson's Curbed report, industry-tracking company SpareFoot puts the total number of facilities in the country at over 50,000, and there's been a record-setting investment in expansion over the past few years. If you have items to store, you should have no problem finding a place for them, and that doesn’t appear to be changing any time soon.

Putnam's top storage facility is A-1 Williams Mini Storage of Cookeville, TN. With unbeatable security and around-the-clock access, there's no better location for your most valued belongings. Discover the A-1 Williams difference with a call to (931) 537-6005, and visit their website for more about their secured storage options.