In 1873, Wilson R. Barr became one of the very first contract agents of the newly formed Traveler’s Insurance Company, with authorization to sell accidental death insurance to travelers on the somewhat wreck-prone railroad trains of the time.

He helped in the founding of the Oil City Hospital, became one of the first directors of the Old Oil City Trust Company, a member of the Oil Exchange, and generally an influential citizen of Oil City. He became the father of Joseph W. Barr Sr. in 1875. Joseph W. Barr Sr. came home from college in 1899 and practiced law in the office of William Parker, later a well-known presiding judge of the Venango County Courts.

The year of 1912 and the death of his father found Joseph W. Barr Sr. as the sole proprietor of a substantial business which had survived the Oil Boom days and the fire and flood of 1892.

In 1912, Joseph W. Barr was named the first treasurer of the Chamber of Commerce of Oil City. The period of 1913 to 1929 signaled growth for Oil City and growth for W. R. Barr & Company.

In the meantime, Barr aggressively tackled the large and growing industrial enterprises of the area, among which were the Oil Well Supply Company and the Oil City Boiler Works, but most important of all were the oil refineries.

In the early 1930s the firm ceased to be known as W. R. Barr & Company and simply became Barrs, with the advertising slogan “Leave it to Barrs”, boldly suggesting that you could leave your problems to Barrs and quit worrying about it.

Over the next 100 plus years, Barr’s would make a number of office moves and welcomed an increased staff and several recognizable leaders, including Joseph W. Barr, Tom Rae, Bill Lamb, Bob Flinchbaugh, Jim Hawkin, Jim Valentine, and Joe Pastor. In 1988, Barr’s purchased and renovated its current office building at 257 Seneca Street. The year 1990 brought the expansion to Franklin and Titusville.

Lori Marvin now serves as the President of Barr’s, the first female leader of the company and the head of a team of 16, across 3 offices. Lori remarks, “There is a sense of duty and responsibility to leading a 150 year old company and I don’t take that lightly. The key to any great company is their team. It’s a cliche, I know, but so very true. I am blessed with some very talented people. Simply put, that’s why we exist”.

Barr’s held their 150th celebration event in August.

Congratulations to Barr’s Insurance on 150 years in Oil City!

This article was published in the Venango Chamber’s September 2023 VenangoWorks! Newsletter.