Oscar F. Mayer
Encyclopedia
Oscar Ferdinand Mayer was a German American
who founded the processed-meat firm Oscar Mayer
that bears his name.
Mayer was born in Kösingen near Neresheim
, Württemberg
, Germany
, where his family had been foresters and ministers for generations. He emigrated to the United States
as a teenager and moved to Detroit to live with a cousin. He worked in that city's meat market and moved to Chicago
in 1876 when his cousin moved there. Mayer found work at a meat market on Chicago's North Side and started a butcher and sausage-making shop of his own in 1883, when he was 24-years-old. Five years later, the proprietor who owned the store refused to renew Mayer's lease, hoping that he could profit from Mayer's business success. Pushed out on his own, Mayer bought a property and constructed a two-story building for his business and family. He married the former Louise Greiner of Munich
in 1887, and their only son was born in that building.
With the company's continued growth, it became a sponsor of such events as polka
bands and the German exhibition at the World's Columbian Exposition
in 1893. The company had grown to 43 employees in 1900, offering meat delivered across the city of Chicago and its suburbs. Capitalizing on an industry trend, the company started using its own brands for its meat products in 1904 and was one of the earliest participants in the Food Safety and Inspection Service
, created under the Federal Meat Inspection Act of 1906, to verify the contents of its products. By the time of his death, the business named after himself had grown to 9,000 employees, with facilities in Davenport, Iowa
, Los Angeles
, Milwaukee and Philadelphia.
and his three daughters at his bedside. His wife had died in 1931.
His great-grandson and heir Chuck Collins
is an economist and philanthropist.
German American
German Americans are citizens of the United States of German ancestry and comprise about 51 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, the country's largest self-reported ancestral group...
who founded the processed-meat firm Oscar Mayer
Oscar Mayer
Oscar Mayer is an American meat and cold cut production company, owned by Kraft Foods, known for its hot dogs, bologna, bacon and Lunchables products.-History:...
that bears his name.
Mayer was born in Kösingen near Neresheim
Neresheim
Neresheim is a town in the Ostalbkreis district, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated northeast of Heidenheim, and southeast of Aalen....
, Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, where his family had been foresters and ministers for generations. He emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as a teenager and moved to Detroit to live with a cousin. He worked in that city's meat market and moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in 1876 when his cousin moved there. Mayer found work at a meat market on Chicago's North Side and started a butcher and sausage-making shop of his own in 1883, when he was 24-years-old. Five years later, the proprietor who owned the store refused to renew Mayer's lease, hoping that he could profit from Mayer's business success. Pushed out on his own, Mayer bought a property and constructed a two-story building for his business and family. He married the former Louise Greiner of Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
in 1887, and their only son was born in that building.
With the company's continued growth, it became a sponsor of such events as polka
Polka
The polka is a Central European dance and also a genre of dance music familiar throughout Europe and the Americas. It originated in the middle of the 19th century in Bohemia...
bands and the German exhibition at the World's Columbian Exposition
World's Columbian Exposition
The World's Columbian Exposition was a World's Fair held in Chicago in 1893 to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. Chicago bested New York City; Washington, D.C.; and St...
in 1893. The company had grown to 43 employees in 1900, offering meat delivered across the city of Chicago and its suburbs. Capitalizing on an industry trend, the company started using its own brands for its meat products in 1904 and was one of the earliest participants in the Food Safety and Inspection Service
Food Safety and Inspection Service
The Food Safety and Inspection Service , an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture , is the public health agency responsible for ensuring that the nation's commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged...
, created under the Federal Meat Inspection Act of 1906, to verify the contents of its products. By the time of his death, the business named after himself had grown to 9,000 employees, with facilities in Davenport, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, Milwaukee and Philadelphia.
Death
After being ill for six weeks, he died in his sleep at age 95 on March 11, 1955, at his home in Chicago, with his son and successor Oscar G. Mayer, Sr.Oscar G. Mayer, Sr.
Oscar Gottfried Mayer, Sr. was an American business executive who served as chairman and president of Oscar Mayer, the processed-meat firm founded by his father.-Early life and education:...
and his three daughters at his bedside. His wife had died in 1931.
His great-grandson and heir Chuck Collins
Chuck Collins
Chuck Collins is an author and a senior scholar at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC, where he directs the Program on Inequality and the Common Good. He is also cofounder of . He is an expert on U.S...
is an economist and philanthropist.