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January 3, 2000 9:50 AM, EST

A management group led by president William H. Clark has purchased Trans-States Lines of Fort Smith, Ark., from the H.L. Hembree family, which has owned the company since 1989.

Terms of the transaction were not released.

Trans-States Lines was started in 1979 to haul furniture for an affiliate of Arkansas Best Corp. and evolved into a nationwide hauler of dry van commodities and intermodal freight containers. The company was one of two truckload carriers spun off following a leveraged buyout of Arkansas Best by Kelso and Co. in 1988.

The new owners of Trans-States Lines said they plan to offer stock in the company to all employees.

For the full story, see the Jan. 3 print edition of Transport Topics. .