Timeline of the production at
Barr Brothers Company

1873

Barr Brothers Company founded by William Robinson Barr and Hugh Barr in Eugene, Oregon.

1873 - 1954

Manufactured guns, needles, axe blades, cutlery, machetes, meat tenderizers, knife pouches, roast beef tiers, ice picks and various other hand tools.

1912

Moved from Oregon to Oakland, California.

1955

Introduced the first hand held hook for the meat packing industry as a safety aid. Only one size available (#T324). Hooks made of carbon steel, handles made of lacquered wood.

1956

Moved from Oakland, California to Santa Clara, California.

1958

Two longer hook lenghts introduced. Volume began to increase as the benefits of hand held hooks began to spread by word of mouth. Began to flatten the shank of steel hook in the area between the fingers to minimize discomfort. Liver hook with plastic handle introduced for delicatessens, meat counters, hospitals and homes to sanitarily grab filets of meat. First hook to be made of stainless steel.

1963

All hooks after this point made of stainless steel for better wear, corrosion resistance, and quality.

1969

Left and right offset hook handles introduced to align the pulling force with the entire arm.

1973

Plastic injection molded handles introduced. The industry requested that we manufacture these because wood handles were thought to hold bacteria easier than plastic. Plastic was more sanitary. Eventually the industry would ban wood from coming in contact with any meat products for export from the United States. The first handle design was flat, with rounded edges, and is still manufactured today. The handle design was tested first in wood form by Atlantic Service Co. The materials tested were ABS and polypropylene. Polypropylene is still being used today.

1975

Bale/shovel handle hook introduced (#T323). This hook has no steel between the fingers. The hook comes out of the side of the handle. This was to be an alternative to the conventional style with the hook between two fingers. The same flat handle design was utilized. The first hooks of this type were tested by Atlantic Service Co.

1976

Plastic handled butchers block scrapers were introduced.

1980

Tapered hammer handle design tested and found to be more comfortable and ergonomic. Wood handles only at this point.

1983

Plastic hammer handle style hooks were requested by the meat industry. At some point in the 1980's wood handles were no longer allowed in the large federally inspected plants. Hammer handles were made for both left and right handed workers.

1991

Bio-Grip ergonomic design hook (#T500) introduced. This hook was intended to help the serious Carpal Tunnel disorder problem.

1993

Moved from Santa Clara, California to Santa Cruz, California.

1994

Smaller diameter round handle introduced for the smaller handed production workers. This was introduced as an alternative to the original flat handle, and also as a handle similar to the hammer handle that the smaller handed worker could use.

1995

OEM contract manufacturing division is started. Initial projects included hand tools, plastic components, and agricultural tools.

1996

Selecting and node hooks introduced with ergonomic knife handle. Ergonomic handle replaces flat handle on block scrapers.

1997

PersonaGrip Adjustable Hand Grip Technology is licensed for use in the meat and food processing industries. The first double injection molded PersonaGrip handle on a tool for the meat industry is introduced.

1998

An entire line of PersonaGrip hooks is introduced to the meat industry. Barr Brothers re-locates its offices and manufacturing to Redding, CA to a 12,000 square foot facility to accomodate growth. BBQ Hooks are introduced utilizing the same high quality features of our industrial tools. These items open up a new market for BBC into the retail specialty segment.

2000

The Grill Wizard BBQ Brush and the Grill Grabber BBQ Grill Grate Lifter are introduced at the National Hardware Show in Chicago where they won an award for The Most Innovative New Products. www.bbq-tools.com website is introduced for online sales.