National Watch Company, Elgin National Watch Company, Elgin, Illinois. (1864-1968)

The company was first incorporated in August 1864 as the National Watch Company in Chicago, Illinois. The founders of this company were Philo Carpenter, Chicago's first pharmacist and drug store owner, Howard Z. Culver, then-Chicago mayor Benjamin W. Raymond, George M. Wheeler, Thomas S. Dickerson, Edward H. Williams and W. Robbins. 

In September of the same year, the founders visited the Waltham Watch Company in Waltham, Massachusetts. They convinced seven of Waltham's makers to work for their new company.

The growing young city of Elgin, Illinois, some 30 miles northwest of Chicago, was chosen as the factory site. Initially, the city was asked to donate 35 acres of land to construct the factory as part of the deal. A derelict farm was selected for this. However, the owners refused to sell the property unless the city purchased their 71 acres for $3,550 ($66,000 in 2023). Four Elgin businessmen agreed to buy the property and donated the required 35 acres to the new watch company. A temporary factory constructed the machines needed to make watch parts. 

The company was reorganized in April 1865.

The factory was completed in 1866. It was steam-powered and built close to the river for the water source. The enormous boilers generated enough steam to run the engines required for powering the factory, resulting in a tall and massive chimney.

The first movement, completed in April 1867, was named the B.W. Raymond in honor of Benjamin W. Raymond, the company's president. The watch was an 18-size, 15-jewel, key wind and set, full plate design (later assigned grade 69). 

In 1867 some of the B.W. Raymond grade 15-jewels movements were built with Pennsylvania Rail Road on the dial for service on the Pennsylvania Rail Road.

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In 1869, the National Watch Company won "Best Watches, Illinois Manufacture" at the 17th Annual Illinois State Fair, for which it won a silver medal. 

By 1870 the plant was turning out 25,000 watches each year and employed nearly 300 men and 200 women. During the early part of the 1870s, the factory was enlarged. By late 1873 the product line included at least 14 different grades, and production was estimated at 100,000 movements per year.

The National Watch Company, like the American Waltham Watch Company, relied on jewelry wholesalers to distribute the movements it produced. Elgin did not make watch cases. Retail customers would pick out a watch movement and a watch case, and a jeweler would fit them together. Elgin employed representatives to help sell the product to wholesalers and ran advertisements in magazines and newspapers to purchase their movements through local jewelry stores.

They produced the Elgin Almanac from 1871 to 1876 to help advertise watches.

Elgin National BW Raymond, Model 8, Grade 240, mfg 1909.

The company officially changed its name to the Elgin National Watch Company in May 1874 because "Elgin" became a synonym for their watches. 

During the mid-1870, the company developed a lower-priced line of watches. Elgin became best known for producing the "working man's" mid-grade watches. They produced several high-grade watches.

Special pocket watches were offered for railroad use. Models included the 23 Jewel "Veritas," the "BW Raymond," and the famous "Father Time" clock, facing the river on the Jewelers Building at 35 East Wacker Drive, Chicago.

Weighing an estimated six tons, the clock was donated to the building by one of its first major tenants, the Elgin National Watch Company. The lantern points towards the Chicago river. It still runs.

Elgin National Watch Company shipped its first wristwatch in 1910.

Antique 1912 Elgin Victorian
Limited Edition Men's 10k GF
Art Deco Style

In 1960 Elgin introduced the first American-made wristwatch to be qualified for railroad service, the grade 730A, also named B.W. Raymond.

During World War II, all civilian manufacturing was halted. The company moved into the defense industry, manufacturing military watches, chronometers, fuses for artillery shells, aircraft instruments and sapphire bearings used for aiming cannons.

Starting from Scratch, piece by piece by hand, they complete a pocket watch.

Over time additional plants were operated in Elgin, Aurora, Illinois and Lincoln, Nebraska. The original factory in Elgin closed in 1964 after having produced half of the total number of pocket watches manufactured in the United States (dollar-type not included). 

In 1964 the company relocated most manufacturing operations to a brand new plant in Blaney, South Carolina, which renamed itself Elgin, South Carolina. 

The factories shut down in 1968. The copyright to the name "Elgin" was also sold in 1968.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

International Museum of Surgical Science, 1524 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago.

Dr. Max Thorek founded the International College of Surgeons (ICS) in 1935 to promote the exchange of surgical knowledge and foster understanding and goodwill worldwide. He had an equally noble goal in establishing the International Museum of Surgical Science ─ to enrich people's lives.

Dr. Max Thorek

Beginning in 1950, through the efforts of Dr. Thorek, the Museum received donations of objects and artwork from many of the national sections of the ICS, individual surgeons and collectors, and other institutions. Shipments of artifacts, paintings, sculptures, and books arrived, and the Museum began to take shape. A historic lakeside mansion was acquired to house the Museum adjacent to the ICS headquarters.

The Museum opened to the public on September 9, 1954. One of the first exhibits to be installed was the Hall of Immortals, containing twelve large stone statues of significant figures in medicine and the allied sciences. In further reverence to great scientists, surgeons and discoveries of the past, a Hall of Murals was created with a series of large paintings depicting the development of surgical science through the ages.

In 1959, the Museum marked the dedication of galleries devoted to France, Mexico, Spain and the Netherlands, with many more national rooms inaugurated over the years. The founding leaders of the Museum hoped to make the collection meaningful to the public by organizing exhibits by nation. Each room, hallway, and stair landing was devoted to one nation or region's historical collection to trace a particular nation's contribution to surgery.

In 1990, new exhibits were developed based on historical themes and surgical disciplines. This type of exhibit provides a more appropriate historical context for the collections. The "Anatomy in the Gallery" exhibition program, developed in 1998 to introduce a contemporary art element into the historical Museum, presents work by contemporary artists dealing with various medically related themes. The exhibitions include work of a challenging and innovative nature about anatomy, death, disease/wellness, disability, and other medical issues.

Over the past decade, the International Museum of Surgical Science has significantly strengthened its educational programs and exhibits and conserved its noteworthy collections and historic landmark building. The Museum looks forward to continuing this progress and to a future of bringing the international aspects of science, history and art to an increasing audience from the entire world.

The historic lakeside mansion at 1524 N. Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, which is now the International Museum of Surgical Science, was constructed in 1917 under the direction of Eleanor Robinson Countiss to house her family. Her father, an executive of the Diamond Match Company, generously provided the funds to build the home.

The elegant structure was designed to follow the historical lines of Le Petit Trianon, a French chateau on the grounds of Versailles completed in 1770 for Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette. The noted Chicago architect Howard Van Doren Shaw was hired to design the Countiss mansion with modifications, including a fourth floor added to the original design, adding a door on the side street, and opening up the northernmost bay for a carriage drive.

Original interior finishes of Italian marble and cut stone; decorative plasterwork, metal fixtures and hardware; eight marble fireplaces; and a gilded metal grand staircase are among the features which have been preserved.

The Countiss family was the sole owner of the building until 1950 when it was acquired by Dr. Max Thorek and the International College of Surgeons. After several years of renovating the building and forming the Museum collection, the Museum opened its doors to the public for the first time in 1954 under the direction of Dr. Max Thorek.

One of the few remaining lakefront mansions, and the only one open to the public, the building received historic status in 1988, is listed in the National Register and the Illinois Register of Historic Places and is a City of Chicago Landmark.

COLLECTIONS

The Museum's four floors are filled with extraordinary artifacts paintings, and sculptures that interpret the primitive and modern healing practices of Eastern and Western civilizations. The Museum's collections and exhibits portray the mysteries and milestones that have shaped modern surgical science.

Amputation─Trephine set (a saw used to remove a circle of tissue or bone. (circa 1860)

Medical artifacts, apparatus and instruments comprise most of the material in the Museum's collections. Over 7,000 medical artifacts spanning centuries of worldwide medical history, from acupuncture to X-ray therapy, are represented in the collections. Among the exceptional artifacts is an Austrian amputation saw with a reversible blade (c.1500); original X-rays taken by radiology pioneer Emil Grubbé (c.1910); the Lindbergh perfusion pump, which enabled doctors to keep organs functioning outside the body, invented by the renowned aviator Charles Lindbergh and Nobel Prize-winning surgeon Alexis Carrel (1935); and a unique collection of heart valves donated by Dr. Juro Wada (c.1960-80).

Fluoroscope

Fine art is featured in the collections through over 600 paintings, prints and sculptures, primarily portraits of individuals and historical depictions of specific procedures or events. Highlights include a portrait of Dr. Edward Jenner by John Russell (1790) and the original plaster cast of the death mask of Napoleon (1821). Significant artworks were commissioned by the Museum for the collections in 1950-53, including the Hall of Immortals and the Hall of Murals.

An Iron Lung

The Museum Library contains over 5,000 books and bound journals, including extremely rare early medical books from the 16th to 18th centuries.

The manuscript collection contains over 650 letters and papers from prominent figures in medical history, extending over four centuries, donated by Dr. Max Thorek in 1954. This collection includes documents from Edward Jenner, Florence Nightingale, Thomas Guy, Laennec, Langenback, Bergmann, Billroth, Malpighi, Rush, Wistar, and others.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Dandy Inn Irish Pub & Restaurant, O'Fallon, Illinois. (1850-2017)

Dandy Inn, built initially as Becherer's Tavern in 1850, has been a general store, a tavern, a dance hall, and always as it still is today, a popular gathering place. It has been said that Abraham Lincoln was one of the early visitors.

Beginning as a one-room log cabin located on U.S. 50 (the Vincennes Trail), the tavern offered travelers food, water, and supplies. The well, located in the front, fed a horse trough and provided a water supply for the business. Initially, the building was primarily a one-story structure. The business grew, and additions encompassed the original one-room tavern.

Near the turn of the century, Henry Becherer's son, Adam, took over the tavern. During that time, a building was constructed on the highway's edge and used as a dance hall.

The early 1900s boasted an expanding clientele when coal mining became a big business in the area. The miners enjoyed congregating at the tavern when work was finished. The prospering mines created a rail industry to carry the ore to distribution points. The railroad workers, needing a place to quench their thirst and get a sandwich, frequented Becherer's tavern.

Workers, deciding that the area would be an excellent place to build a house and raise a family, created a community with life interwoven at Becherer's Tavern. Visitors kept increasing. The railway had a streetcar that carried people from Lebanon, Illinois, to East St. Louis, and the Crossroads Station was on Old Collinsville Road. More and more people were traveling by automobiles, and Becherer's had one of the first gas pumps in the area.

Dances were held in the pasture – admission 10¢. Some guys would jump over the fence to avoid paying the cover charge. This was bootleg time – so root beer was the main fare. But remember, anything was available at Becherer's. If you wanted bootleg whiskey, you simply told Adam. The place had a somewhat protected status. Near the end of prohibition in 1932, when Roosevelt indicated a repeal of prohibition if elected, Adam began building a new building to accommodate the future beer drinkers. The farmers liked coming to Becherer's.

The present two-story tavern structure was built in 1933 and opened on New Year's Day, 1934, and beer was legal. It was a magnificent building with few like it outside the cities. It provided the owner's family a store, tavern, and living quarters, and the business prospered. 

Adam Jr., Orville and Kate Roach, and Adam's children began running the place when their father entered the service in 1941.

By 1960, the clientele had changed again. It wasn't a community center anymore, and the dances long since had ceased. The towns had grown, and people were more interested in O'Fallon or Fairview Heights social gatherings. By then, Becherer's was a neighborhood tavern and store.

It was an excellent spot for the residents of the surrounding subdivisions to stop on their way home from work or to visit for a late-evening beer. Those were the folks most affected when they decided to close. Until they decided to retire on New Year's Eve 1976, the place had changed little. The beer was cold, and the sandwiches were made fresh at the grocery counter in the next room. The customers, a blend of newcomers and crusty old-timers, made a visit an exciting experience. The neighbors waited four months before the Daniels bought the corner and opened their place.

On April Fool's Day, 1977, Dave and Phyllis Daniels officially opened the Dandy Inn. Two of their children, Mark and Ann, were put to work and are still connected to the place today. Phyllis is now retired but loves to come in for lunch with friends. Mark is in from early morning to late night most days of the week, usually fixing something or chatting with customers. Ann has since retired from the restaurant business. She stays busy raising her kids and running The Scrapbook Factory down the street. 

Every year on St. Patrick's Day, Ann is pulled from retirement to help at the Dandy Inn during one of the busiest times of the year. Dandy Inn Irish Pub boiled their own beef briskets, making the best corned beef in Southern Illinois.

Continuing the family business, Mark's son, Casey, works in the kitchen after school. Most people think he also has the restaurant business in his blood, but who knows what the future will bring. After over three decades in business, the Dandy Inn has seen many changes but still has something for everyone; a great gathering place for families, a well-worn bar for an after-work beer, and always delicious, home-style family recipes.

My personal favorite restaurant in St. Clair County for fresh hand-breaded cod or perch (both on the menu) and a mound of freshly cut fries. The outdoor covered seating was comfortable too.

Dandy Inn permanently closed its doors on Sunday, January 15, 2017.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Mineola Hotel, 91 North Cora Avenue, Fox Lake, Lake County, Illinois.

Thomas Parker purchased a tract of land along Fox Lake on behalf of the Union League Club of Chicago. The club intended to develop the property as a recreational retreat for its members and built a small clubhouse on the site. 

The Chain O'Lakes had a booming resort industry due mainly to increased access to the area in 1882 when the Wisconsin Central (later Soo Line) Railroad opened.

Postcard depicting the original Mineola clubhouse, as constructed in 1884, before renovation in 1901–1903 by Edson and Emma.

The Mineola was built in 1884 (or 1889) by the Mineola Club of Chicago (some have credited it to members of the Chicago Board of Trade).

The 100-room hotel boasted hot and cold running water, a beautiful natural setting, and boating, fishing and hunting opportunities starting at $2 per day. It is believed, but not confirmed, that the hotel's veranda was designed by Alphonse Howe & Charles Caskey, the architects of the famed Grand Hotel on Michigan's Mackinac Island. The hotel was built as a private clubhouse for Chicago's elite. By 1891 it had been sold to Edson C. Howard, who remodeled it into a public hotel to accommodate the growing number of tourists to the Fox Lake in the Chain O'Lakes area during its Gilded Age heyday. 

Edison Howard bought the hotel, opened it to the public, and built its southern half in 1903.

As early as the 1910s, Fox Lake was known for its drinking and gambling establishments. The Chicago Tribune reported it was "…worse than in the levee districts of the city." The situation in Fox Lake was partly due to Chicago's efforts to "clean up" its own vice districts, which caused those districts to re-settle in the suburbs. The newspaper article added, "Probably the most vicious resort is the Mineola Hotel, and all of the hotels are supplied with slot machines."

During Prohibition (1920-1933), the lakes region became a notorious hangout for Chicago mobsters. The Mineola was reportedly a hideaway for Al Capone and his gang, who could freely gamble and drink the nights away.

In 1943, the Mineola was purchased by the Jakstas Family, who has owned it ever since. The family has fended off demolition many times through the decades. One scare came in 1953 when a hotel guest set a fire on the third floor, which luckily was contained.

A decline in tourism in the early 1960s made it difficult to keep the business going, and by 1969, the Jakstas' were prepared to raze the hotel, going so far as to sell off the original furniture. Mrs. Emma Jakstas was quoted by the Chicago Tribune on February 23, 1969: "We regret tearing down the hotel, but it is a real tinder box... It would be too expensive to remodel this mammoth place."

Dining Room

Peter and Emma Jakstas's son, Peter, was convinced the family should keep the building. They closed the hotel portion to the public but kept the first-floor restaurant, bar, and second-floor banquet facility open until 2012, when the village closed it due to safety concerns.

The Mineola is 225 feet long, four stories high, and considered the largest wooden structure in Illinois. 

The National Park Service listed the hotel on the National Register of Historic Places on July 29, 1979. The Register is the nation's official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation and is administered by the National Park Service.

Though it's been the dream of the Jakstas family to fully restore the building, those efforts have been met with mixed success and much difficulty. After 68 years in the family's ownership, Pete Jakstas is considering retirement and the sale of the hotel, marina and surrounding 17 acres.

On Saturday, the day before closing, the Mineola held an 'Eat and Drink the Mineola Dry Party.' The Hotel closed indefinitely on Sunday, May 21, 2012.

Landmarks Illinois named the hotel one of Illinois's ten most endangered historic places in 2013.

As of May 2022, the Jakstas property was under contract for purchase by developers. The historic Mineola Hotel will be razed, and a new boutique hotel complex will be built "with aesthetic features from the original hotel" incorporated into the new building. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Gipps Brewing Company, Peoria, Illinois. (1881-1954)

Peoria has long since attained a leadership position in brewing and distilling interests, and its output along those lines exceeds any other city of equal size in the country. At the head of its enterprise are men of marked business ability, keen discernment and unfaltering energy — men who recognize the possibilities of trade and utilize each opportunity for its full worth. 

George H. Gipps is a representative of this class, and his position in the business circles of the city is that of general agent for the Terre Haute Brewing Company. He has been identified with the brewing trade since he completed his education. He was born near Morton, Tazewell county, Illinois, on August 3, 1863, on the farm belonging to his father, John Mathuen Gipps. John came from England to the New World in 1845 and traveled to the country's interior, settling upon a tract of land near Morton, Illinois. He successfully engaged in farming there for several years, watching his expenditures carefully. When he had sufficient capital, he embarked on the brewing business in Peoria, engaging in that line of trade in about 1864.

Toth Buffet Serves Gripps Beer.

George was associated with Mr. Howe in the establishment and management of a little ale brewery, which was afterward moved to the foot of Bridge street, where the large plant of the Gipps Brewing Company stood. Gradually he developed a business of extensive proportions. As his trade increased, he enlarged his facilities and, in time, drew his patronage from a vast territory. He was president of the Gipps Brewing Company at the time of his death, November 27, 1881, at sixty-three. His wife, Ellen Dawson, was also a native of England, and they were married in New York City in 1852. They had two children, the elder being Mrs. Bessie Smith, the wife of C.B. Smith of Peoria. The mother passed away in this city in 1898.

George H. Gipps was but six years of age when the family left the farm and took up residency in Peoria so that his education was acquired in the schools of this city, which he attended until he left high school to become an active factor in business life. 

George was offered the opportunity to enter the establishment of the Gipps Brewing Company, and he did so, thoroughly acquainting himself with every part of the trade. He remained there until 1885 when he became associated with the Union Brewing Company, of which he was secretary for 15 years. He then withdrew from that connection to accept the agency and position of manager with the Terre Haute Brewing Company in 1900. He has been connected with this corporation as its general agent, having supervised extending its trade relations. The position is an enormous responsibility and involves the most critical considerations and duties, for which Mr. Gipps's long experience has prepared him well.

In 1888 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Gipps and Miss Jennie V. Tripp, a daughter of R.H. Tripp. They had two children, Charles M. and Della T. 

Mr. Gipps has advanced to a high position as a Mason. He had served as high priest of Peoria Chapter for three years, as a Knight Templar Mason and was a member of the Mystic Shrine. He also belonged to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He had various other social relations, including a member of the South Side Turners, the Concordia Singing Society and the Creve Coeur Club. His social qualities have made him famous, while his business ability has gained prominence.

The Garden Theatre opened in 1913 at 2139 SW Adams St., Peoria, and closed in 1942.

From 1837 until the 1980s, Peoria played a significant role in beer production.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Majestic Theatre, New Paxton Theater, Paxtonian Theater, Paxton Theater, and Finally the Majestic Paxton Theater in Paxton, Illinois. (1913-2007)

The Majestic Theatre in Paxton, Illinois (just North of Champaign) was the largest and most impressive theater when it opened in 1913, with a seating capacity of just over 350. It was designed by the firm of Mesar, Hunt and Sullivan for A.B. McCollum, who owned a handful of area theaters then.

The Majestic Building contained not only the theater but storefronts as well. Some of its interior plaster styles and metalwork were based on what the architects saw in a downtown Chicago theater. The theatre initially presented both vaudeville and concerts on its tiny stage, in addition to movies. The last vaudeville act at the Majestic was in 1929. 

In 1930, the theatre was wired for sound after being closed for about a year for remodeling. 

When the theater reopened, it had a new name, the New Paxton Theater (the original choice was the New Wonder Theater, but it was changed at the last minute). A new marquee was also put up around this time.

Not long after the name change, another name change occured, this time as the Paxtonian Theater. In 1935, air-conditioning was installed, and by this time, the theater was simply called the Paxton Theater, the name it would continue to be known for nearly five decades.

In the 50s, Cinemascope and Vistavision films played on Paxton's screen. By the end of the 70s, however, business was falling off at the theater, despite blockbusters like "Rocky" and "Star Wars" having successful runs there.

Its new owner in 1983 attempted to lure in new patrons by remodeling the aging theater, installing new seating and restoring the marquee, but the Paxton was closed within a year.

Four years later, Scott Graham and the newly formed Majestic Paxton Theater Group reopened the theater. The group, besides renaming the theater once again, the Majestic Paxton, further restored the theater, and seating was reduced to 219.

The Majestic Paxton hosted dinner theater, live performances, children's theater, and film screenings for many years but was closed in 2005.

A word from Scott Graham, who remodeled and reopened the Majestic Paxton theater in the fall of 1983.

Hello. My name is Scott Graham. I am the one who kept a promise to my community, Paxton, remodeled and reopened the long-time closed Majestic Paxton theater in the fall of 1983. I wish to clarify that business at the Majestic Paxton theater was very, very good. 

I keep reading articles that I closed the theater because it could just not make it. This is totally untrue. The theater was shut down by the then real estate owner for perceived frivolous reasons, against my will. Had this unfortunate event not happened, I guarantee that the Majestic Paxton theater would still be open, thriving, and continuing to serve the Paxton community and area. 

I understand this Grand Lady is again abandoned and in disrepair, bringing sorrow to my heart. I pray someone will again fall in love with Her and give Her the attention she deserves. Paxton, you have a real jewel under your noses. Please don't lose Her forever this time!                                                                                        —February 14, 2007   

The Historic Majestic Paxton Theatre was Destroyed by Fire on November 13, 2007.

PAXTON, IL — A fire Tuesday morning completely destroyed the historic Paxton Majestic Theatre building, which included the theater space and apartments on the upper floor. Firefighters from six area departments fought the blaze and saved nearby buildings from destruction. No one was injured in the fire. By Tuesday afternoon, firefighters were still on the scene, as the remains of the theater continued to smoke. The cause of the fire is still under investigation, according to the State of Illinois fire marshal's office.

The Paxton Majestic, also known as the New Paxton, Paxtonian and Majestic Theatre, originally opened in 1913 in a building dating to the 19th century. It was last used in 2005 for live theatrical stage productions.

Paxtonians are shocked and mourning the loss of a Paxton landmark. Rhonda Blackford, who works across the street from the theater building at a florist shop, says, "It was just so sad to see something so historical go up so fast."

The Paxton Majestic burned to the ground in a blaze on Tuesday, November 13, 2007.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

Hamburger University, from the World Renowned, McDonald's Corporation, Chicago, Illinois.

The McDonald's chain was famously born when an ambitious milkshake mixer salesman named Ray Kroc partnered with and eventually bought out Maurice and Richard McDonald, two brothers with a small but popular chain of hamburger restaurants. Kroc opened his first new location in Des Plaines, Illinois 1955, naming it McDonald's.

The McDonald's № 1 Store Museum (1955-2017) in Des Plaines, Illinois, was a replica of the first McDonald's restaurant in Des Plaines, opened by Ray Kroc in April 1955. The company usually refers to this as The Original McDonald's, although it is not the first McDonald's restaurant but the ninth; the first was opened by Richard and Maurice McDonald in San Bernardino, California, in 1940, while the oldest McDonald's still in operation is the third one built, in Downey, California, which opened in 1953. However, the Des Plaines restaurant marked the beginning of future CEO Kroc's involvement with the firm. It opened under the aegis of his franchising company McDonald's Systems, Inc., which became McDonald's Corporation after Kroc purchased the McDonald brothers' stake.

The third McDonald's restaurant opened on August 18, 1953, at 10207 Lakewood Boulevard, Downey, California. It was also the second restaurant franchised by Richard and Maurice McDonald before the involvement of Ray Kroc in the company. The original building is a museum, while the red roof in the background is a modern McDonald's serving food and kid's toys.

Hamburger University started in 1961 with a class of 15 people and was held in the basement of a McDonald's restaurant in Elk Grove Village, Illinois. Fred L. Turner, a grill cook, developed and operated the educational program. Soon, Turner's McDonlad's corporate education and training programs became the pioneering concept for other businesses. 

Fred Turner became McDonald's CEO in 1973 and replaced Kroc as Chairman in 1977, later named Senior Chairman upon Kroc's death. Under Turner, McDonald's expanded its operations to 118 countries, with over 31,000 outlets and over a billion hamburgers sold. Fred retired in 2004, serving as Honorary Chairman until he died in 2013.

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Those who attended Hamburger University in its earliest days received hands-on instruction from Fred Turner and Ray Kroc.

Hamburger University was designed exclusively to instruct personnel employed by McDonald's Corporation or by McDonald's Independent Franchisees in the various aspects of the business and operations of McDonald's.

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The first "Corporate College" was created by General Electric (GE) as a place for Nationwide management employees to learn in conjunction with the company's business plans and development goals. GE Crotonville, Ossining, New York, started in the mid-1950s. Today, it's called the GE Management Development Institute.

This makes Hamburger University one of the first corporate education programs of its kind. McDonald's retains more rising stars by developing talent and leadership at Hamburger University.

McDonald's Global Headquarters was located on an 80-acre campus in Oak Brook, Illinois, from its founding until 2018, when the McDonald's headquarters moved to Chicago's West Loop into a new complex built on the former site of Oprah Winfrey's Harpo Studios.

Managers in McDonald's restaurants graduated from Hamburger University, eventually moving to a 130,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility on the McDonald's Home Office Campus in Oak Brook, Illinois.

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2022 - TOP 5 CORPORATE UNIVERSITIES

       1) Google; Googleplex

       2) McDonald's Hamburger University

       3) Apple University

       4) Disney University

       5) Intel Network Builders University

Students at McDonald's Hamburger University, for example, at the restaurant ownership level, learn to successfully run a restaurant and report and analyze the books. Further education is necessary to become an executive to support the franchises and help them develop business skills and focus on leadership skills. With a degree, the graduate is confident and ready to support McDonald's employees, restaurant owners, and sales growth.

Hamburger University is a fundamental degree-granting institution, so much so that credits earned can be applied toward an associate's or bachelor's degree at other colleges and universities.

McDonald's Home Office Campus and Hamburger University moved to 1045 West Randolph Street, Chicago, and opened in its new home in June 2018. 

1045 West Randolph Street, Chicago, Illinois.

McDonald's office space, including Hamburger University, occupies 490,000 square feet of the building.

They have grown from the old main campus in Oak Brook, Illinois, to the addition of seven satellite campuses worldwide at one time: Tokyo, London, Sydney, Munich, São Paulo, Shanghai, and Moscow. A faculty of 30 resident professors teach and communicate in 22 languages with the help of translators and technology. 

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McDonald's has reopened its doors under a new name in Russia after the fast food giant pulled out of the country over its invasion of Ukraine. Fifteen McDonald's restaurants in and around Moscow reopened with their new name, "Vkusno & Tochka," which translates as "Tasty and that's it." Businessman Alexander Govor, who already owns 25 restaurants in Siberia, agreed to buy all 847 Russian McDonald's outlets after the chain boycotted the country in early March. He vowed to keep all their 62,000 employees on equivalent terms for at least two years.

To date, Hamburger University has produced around 330,000 degree holders worldwide.

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.

The Illinois Central Railroad No.121 Green Diamond Streamliner Passenger Train. 1936-1968

The Illinois Central Railroad moved into streamlining with the articulated "Green Diamond" rail engine and cars in 1936. 

The Illinois Central's Chicago-St. Louis, Missouri, Green Diamond streamliner was built in 1936 by Pullman-Standard, with electrical-mechanical components by Electro-Motive. It was the last articulated trainset to be built with the integrated power unit; the locomotive carried number 121. In 1947 the IC's Paducah shops overhauled the train, then operated as the "Miss Lou" between Jackson, Mississippi and New Orleans, Louisiana. In 1950 it was retired and scrapped. 

Illinois Central proudly billed as "the first standard-size diesel-powered streamliner." 

The Illinois Central Railroad proudly billed the Green Diamond diesel engine built in 1936 by Pullman-Standard and powered by Electro-Motive Corporation.

The Engineer Cab.

Advertising for the Illinois Central began in 1936 on the system between the Midwest and Southeast that covers 7,000 miles in the process and visits such towns as Detroit, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, and Milwaukee.

The quick popularity of the early-years design of streamliners turned out to be the reason the design ended up a financial disaster. The early design did not allow the train to be lengthened or shortened, and late streamliners featured a matched but separable locomotive.

Car № 125 - 8 Seat Dining Area.

The apex for streamlined passenger trains in America was in 1956.

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The purpose of trucks on train cars is to provide support at high-speed, guidance, and passenger comfort. Freight car trucks are separate units that can be removed for maintenance, repair, or replacement. Trucks are a common cause of train derailments.

Each Car Has A Specific Purpose.

Cars do not change positions or trains in the early years.

Car № 121:

The Power Car was a (Winton Engine Works) Winton-201A, 1,200 hp, sixteen-cylinder Diesel Engine. The railroad engineer's control room was, of course, at the front of this car. The auxiliary generator and heating boiler controls were here. Below the floor, the first truck was powered. The second truck, articulated with the second car, was not powered. A 725-gallon fuel tank was mounted between the trucks. 

Car № 122:

Baggage, Storage, and U.S. Mail Car. The Mail Compartment occupied near one-half of the coach. Registered Nurse/Passenger Assistant onboard each trip.

Car № 123:

56 Reclining Seats in Coach. The Conductor's Office, and Restrooms.

Car № 124:

60 Reclining Seats in Coach. 

Car № 125:

The Dining & Lounge Observation Car, aka The Parlor Car. There are 8 seats available in the dining room, 20 more in the lounge, plus standing room. The Kitchen was in the forward portion of this car with table service at the rear of the lounge. It was said to have been a spectacular view out of the back window.  

An old magazine article mentioned the spacious restrooms; for a train car, of course."The toilet is big enough for me at six foot three to comfortably change into a suit. I learned quickly that a five-hour train ride in a suit does not build self-confidence."  — Unknown

Green Diamond Information

The train is fully Air-Conditioned and Heated. There is radio communication. Within the train, private and public communication use the same system. Full-width rubber diaphragms joined the cars. All cars were articulated, sharing a truck with the neighboring car, giving extra stability and a smoother ride. 

Compiled by Dr. Neil Gale, Ph.D.