Oldest McDonald's restaurant facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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McDonald's Restaurant #3
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The McDonald's in Downey, California is almost unchanged in appearance since it opened in 1953.
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| Location | 10207 Lakewood Blvd., Downey, California |
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| Built | 1953 |
| Architectural style | Googie architecture Modern architecture |
| NRHP reference No. | 84003893 |
The oldest McDonald's restaurant still operating today is located in Downey, California. It opened on August 18, 1953, making it the third McDonald's ever built. This restaurant was also the second one to be franchised by the original founders, Richard and Maurice McDonald, before Ray Kroc joined the company.
Today, this historic McDonald's is a popular spot for tourists. Its unique look, including its famous sign, was considered important enough to be added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984. However, it wasn't officially added because the owner at the time didn't want it to be.
Contents
The Story of McDonald's: How It All Began
- Further information: History of McDonald's
The McDonald brothers, Richard and Maurice, started their first restaurant in 1937 near the Monrovia Airport in California. It was a small, eight-sided building called The Airdrome. In 1940, they moved it to San Bernardino, California.
From Barbecue to Burgers: A Menu Makeover
At first, their restaurant was a drive-in that sold barbecue. But the brothers soon realized that most of their money came from selling hamburgers. So, in 1948, they closed the restaurant for three months to make some big changes.
When they reopened in December, it was a walk-up hamburger stand. They sold only hamburgers, potato chips, and orange juice. The next year, they added french fries and Coca-Cola to the menu. This simpler menu, along with a faster way to prepare food (like an assembly line), allowed them to sell hamburgers for just 15 cents! This was about half the price of a regular sit-down restaurant.
Franchising the Golden Arches: Spreading the Idea
The restaurant became very successful. In 1953, the McDonald brothers decided to let other people open restaurants using their idea. This is called franchising.
The first person to buy a McDonald's franchise was Neil Fox, an executive from Occidental Petroleum. He opened his restaurant in Phoenix, Arizona, in May 1953. He paid a one-time fee of $1,000. His restaurant was the second to use the famous Golden Arches design, which was created by architect Stanley Clark Meston.
The Downey McDonald's was the fourth restaurant to open. It was franchised by Roger Williams and Bud Landon, who were Neil Fox's business partners. They used their knowledge of choosing good spots for gas stations to pick the Downey location. Like other early McDonald's owners, they had to use Meston's special design.
Why the Downey McDonald's Is So Special
When Ray Kroc bought the McDonald's chain from the McDonald brothers, the Downey restaurant was not included. This is because it had a different agreement directly with the McDonald brothers. Because of this, the Downey location didn't have to follow the new rules and changes that McDonald's Corporation made for its other restaurants.
A Unique Menu and Challenges
The Downey McDonald's menu became different from other McDonald's restaurants. It didn't have popular items like the Big Mac, which were created by Ray Kroc's company. Also, a modern McDonald's opened very close by in the mid-1970s. Because of these reasons, the Downey restaurant didn't do very well.
In 1990, McDonald's Corporation finally bought the Downey restaurant. At that time, it was the only McDonald's that was still independent from the main company.
Saving a Piece of History: Restoration Efforts
With low sales and damage from the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the restaurant was closed. McDonald's planned to tear it down and build a new, modern "retro" restaurant nearby.
However, many people and groups who wanted to save old buildings spoke up. The restaurant was even put on the National Trust for Historic Preservation's list of "America's Most Endangered Historic Places" in 1994. Because of this public demand, McDonald's decided to save it. They spent two years fixing up the restaurant and reopened it.
Today, visitors can enjoy the restored restaurant and also explore a gift shop and museum right next door.
Other Early McDonald's Restaurants
Very few of the first McDonald's restaurants still exist. This is mostly because McDonald's Corporation asked its franchise owners to update their buildings over time.
The Original San Bernardino Site
The very first McDonald's, the octagonal building in San Bernardino, was torn down in 1953. It was replaced by a building with the Golden Arches design. However, the McDonald brothers made a mistake when they sold the chain to Ray Kroc: they didn't keep the rights to the McDonald's name. So, they had to rename their restaurant "The Big M." It eventually closed in 1972.
Today, only part of the original sign remains at the San Bernardino site. In 1998, an unofficial McDonald's museum was opened there by Albert Okura, who owns the Juan Pollo chicken restaurant chain.
Other Notable Early Locations
- The seventh McDonald's, built in Pomona, California, is now a doughnut shop. It is considered the second-oldest existing McDonald's building.
- Ray Kroc's first McDonald's franchise, which was the ninth in the chain, opened in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1955. The original building was torn down in 1984, but a replica was built on the same spot. This replica was known as the McDonald's No. 1 Store Museum but was also later demolished in 2018.
- A McDonald's sign from 1962 in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, with a single arch, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006.
- Another early McDonald's building from 1962 is still operating in San Jose, California. A modern restaurant is now attached to it, and it's recognized as a historic site in the city.
Images for kids
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The sign outside the Downey McDonald's in 2014
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A view of the inside of the Downey McDonald's
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Another view from the outside of the Downey McDonald's in 2014, with the museum to the right
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The Downey McDonald's in 2017
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The site of the first McDonald's restaurant, San Bernardino, California. Only part of the sign remains from the original structure.
