Our History "Celebrating 80 Years in 2023"
It's 2023 and we are celebrating 80 years and 4 generations of structural movers! Our history is rich in family values, hard work, dedication, innovation, and reliability. “Treat each house as if it were your own” – Aaron Oney
A.M. Oney House Moving –The First Generation: A.M. “Aubrey” Oney was a pioneer in the house moving industry. Starting a business moving houses when many had never heard of such was a big risk. House movers in the 1940’s paved the way for generations to come. They began with wooden beams and bolsters, even using entire trees for support when needed; later replacing them with steel. A.M.’s first haul truck was a 1938 single axle International. Compared with the trucks of today, they were small and underpowered. Often times multiple trucks were needed to move a single load. Over the years A.M. and his son, Aaron would upgrade trucks and equipment and develop new methods for moving houses and other structures.
A.E. Oney House Moving Co. – The Second Generation: Aaron Oney was a second-generation house mover and grew the business outside of Marshall and Harrison County. A.E. Oney House Moving Co. became well known throughout East Texas as a respectable, reputable, and quality house mover. He and wife, Sandra invested in newer trucks and equipment throughout the years. The property in Woodlawn, Texas where our office, shop, and family homes sit today, was purchased by Aaron in 1965. In addition to moving houses, Aaron began buying and selling houses as well. Throughout the years, many houses were moved to the yard in Woodlawn, sold, and relocated. Aaron, like his father, was a pioneer in the business. He took the time study a job and the structure itself. Aaron understood the importance of preserving a structure and making sure each was properly supported. He knew moving a house was more than placing a couple of beams on dollies and hitting the road. Every structure is different in the way it’s constructed, as is the terrain it will travel as it’s moved.
L.W. Oney House Moving, Inc. – The Third Generation Preparing the Fourth: Lonnie Oney is a third-generation house mover and owner of L.W. Oney House Moving, Inc, also known as OHM. Lonnie worked alongside Aaron from the time he was 12 years old when he and a friend, David Wilson, moved their first building, on their own, on the Oney yard. Lonnie purchased the business from Aaron in 2001 and has grown the business to service Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Lonnie and wife, Kay have invested heavily in the business upgrading their fleet. With new trucks, trailers, beams, general and custom equipment, L.W. Oney House Moving, Inc. can move and raise structures previous generations would never have dreamed of touching. Like father and grandfather, Lonnie continues to focus on quality of service. In doing so, he and longtime friend and co-worker, David Wilson, have designed and built new equipment for the sole purpose of moving and raising structures that save time and reduce the amount of stress a building is under during a move. Because of those developments, Lonnie has developed a second business, Oney Transport Systems. The new business manufactures custom hydraulic trailers, air ride dollies, airboxes, custom truck accessories and more. Also working alongside Lonnie is fourth generation house mover, Kyle Oney. While the fourth generation is learning the business, the company continues to grow and expand, and Kyle shares new ideas daily. Great ideas and execution of those ideas will bring the company into a century of business and prepare it for generations to come.
Humble Beginnings
House movers in the early 1900's had few resources at their disposal, but that never stopped them. Dreams and determination lead to hard work and execution of ideas. Today's structural movers continue to dream and innovate, building upon what their grandfathers started.
Modern Times
Every structure is unique and every route presents it's own obstacles. Taking the time to plan, using the proper equipment, even if it means building new or renting from out of state, we do what it takes to do the job right. The structure pictured above was moved using hydraulic dollies, controlled via remote.