What's the most inexpensive way to ship the entire contents of a large storage locker across the country?

call a freight trucking company.

Maybe something like pods.com or Uhaul u-boxes. They are portable storage units and you fill them so you save on man-hours.

By truck. Call a trucking broker or two. They set up loads for truckers.

I know some burners with a heck of a setup they haul cross country a couple times a year. For them, they ship by train. Depending on the size and where someone is headed, it could very well be the cheaper option, considering the fuel economy.

This can all be handled by telephone with a credit or debit card. There is no need to do all the things you describe in order to unite your friend with her belongings. Below is a full page of shippers that will do this for your friend. Just shop for prices.

Ground Transport Shipping

Hello. Here’s an update to my original question. I’ve contacted freight and ground transport shipping companies as suggested by @stanleybmanly and @Espiritus_Corvus. The cheapest quote I received was $1,200. This is still over the amount that my friend can afford to pay, and the quote did not include paying someone to remove all the items from the storage unit, pallet all items, and then move the items into her home after they arrived at their destination. I’m told this can add an additional $1,000 – $1,500. So, as far as my research is showing, there is no inexpensive way to do this. If anyone has additional suggestions, I’m happy to explore them. Thanks!

@Smashley In my youth, shipping by rail was an option. I’m surprised that railroads will still bother with taking on small loads for different customers sharing a single boxcar. How many people are old enough here to remember Railway Express?

@give seek I’m curious as to how your friend finally resolves her problem. Please keep us posted.

@stanleybmanly I’m not sure, but I’d assumed these guys I know weren’t sharing a boxcar with anyone, but rather filled the whole thing themselves as best as they could. It has to hold enough gear for a dozen people with too much time and money to go to Burning Man

A boxcar should accommodate a great deal more than the largest storage locker’s worth of stuff. But the problem there would be about your friend’s proximity to a suitable railhead, along with the expense of the 2 trucks and their loading and unloading. You have the expense of bringing the stuff to the boxcar, and the cost again from the boxcar to home.