The History of Mr. Messenger

Forty years ago, Frank Lanza, President and founder of Mr. Messenger, was working in the circulation department of a large Connecticut daily newspaper. Part of his duties included the responsibility for a fleet of 80 newspaper delivery trucks.

He liked his work, but always had an entrepreneurial bent, so at the age of 27, much against the advice of fellow newspaper executives, he bit the bullet and left for his hometown of Providence, RI, to start up a messenger/courier service. With the help of his brother, who had been recently discharged from the service, and two fairly new station wagons, Mr. Messenger was off and running.

The first year, the company concentrated on delivery of mail between U.S. Post Offices and commercial and industrial firms. As a result of this association with the Post Office Department, Mr. Messenger was awarded several Post Office contracts for the transportation of mail between Post Offices (Star Routes).

Next, Mr. Messenger organized a network of routes in southern New England to transport optical, dental and film to and from laboratories and clients. A survey in 1961 by the company indicated that there was a need for next day parcel deliveries, and this opened up additional routes covering Rhode Island and parts of Massachusetts and Connecticut. United Parcel Service did not arrive in the area until the mid 70's.

With the advent of wide body airplanes carrying an increasing amount of freight, it was a natural move for Mr. Messenger to jump into the pick up and delivery of air freight. Today, the company is the official freight agent for all the airlines serving both the Providence and Boston airports.

In addition to the distribution systems listed above, Mr. Messenger maintains a round-the-clock, immediate, expedited messenger service for the shipping public. It is not unusual for Mr. Messenger to transport highly critical parts, whether it be a small parcel or a large container, to any point in the country.

Today, Mr. Messenger operates a well-maintained fleet of vehicles equipped with highly sophisticated communications systems and uniformed drivers. The company is the recognized leading messenger/courier service in southern New England.

Mr. Messenger, Inc. was sold in 2000. Mr. Messenger, Inc. has aggressively expanded it’s operations by acquiring customer lists from competing companies and opening three new locations: Manchester, New Hampshire, Las Vegas, Nevada, and Pembroke, Massachusetts.