# Charles Rudolph Walgreen

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American businessman and founder of Walgreens

For his son, see [Charles Rudolph Walgreen Jr.](/source/Charles_Rudolph_Walgreen_Jr.)

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Charles Rudolph Walgreen Born (1873-10-09)October 9, 1873 Knoxville, Illinois, U.S. Died December 11, 1939(1939-12-11) (aged 66) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. Education Dixon College Occupation Businessman Known for Founding Walgreens Spouse Myrtle Norton Walgreen[1] Children 2, including Charles Jr.

**Charles Rudolph Walgreen** (October 9, 1873 – December 11, 1939) was an American businessman and the founder of [Walgreens](/source/Walgreens).

## Early life

Walgreen was born on a farm near [Galesburg, Illinois](/source/Galesburg%2C_Illinois), before moving to [Dixon, Illinois](/source/Dixon%2C_Illinois), in 1887.[2] He was the son of [Swedish](/source/Sweden) immigrants.

In the 1790s, Charles's great-great-great-grandfather, Sven Olofsson, adopted the surname *Wahlgren* (Swedish pronunciation: [\[ˈvɑ̂ːlɡreːn\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Swedish))[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] during his military service, a family fact passed down over the generations. When Charles's father, Carl Magnus Olofsson, came to America from Sweden, he decided to change the family name to *Walgreen*.[3] When Charles was still quite young he and his family relocated to [Dixon, Illinois](/source/Dixon%2C_Illinois), in 1887. He attended [Dixon High School](/source/Dixon_High_School_(Illinois)) and Dixon Business College. He was a member of the international fraternity [Tau Kappa Epsilon](/source/Tau_Kappa_Epsilon).[4]

As a young adult, he lost part of a finger in an accident at a shoe factory. The doctor who treated him persuaded him to become an apprentice for a local druggist. His interest in pharmacy dated from the time he was employed by D.S. Horton, a druggist in Dixon where he was apprenticed as a pharmacist. In 1893, Walgreen went to Chicago and became a registered pharmacist.[5] At the start of the [Spanish–American War](/source/Spanish%E2%80%93American_War), Walgreen enlisted with the [1st Illinois Volunteer Cavalry](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1st_Illinois_Volunteer_Cavalry&action=edit&redlink=1). While serving in Cuba, he contracted [malaria](/source/Malaria) and [yellow fever](/source/Yellow_fever), which continued to plague him for the rest of his life.[6]

## Career

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding missing information. (October 2025)

After his discharge, Walgreen returned to Chicago and worked as a pharmacist for Isaac Blood. In 1901, he purchased a local store and began operating it as a pharmacy. He opened a second store in 1909, and by 1916, he owned nine drug stores, which he incorporated as Walgreen Co. Walgreens was one of the first chains to carry non-pharmaceuticals as a mainstay of the store's retail selection. Walgreens offered low-priced lunch counters, built its own ice cream factory, and introduced the malted milk shake in 1922. By his death in 1939, more than 490 Walgreens stores were established.[7]

## Personal life

### Political views

According to *[The Chicago Reader](/source/Chicago_Reader)*, Walgreen was "conservative in many respects", but defended President [Franklin D. Roosevelt](/source/Franklin_D._Roosevelt)'s [Revenue Act of 1935](/source/Revenue_Act_of_1935) .[8]

In 1935, Walgreen publicly criticized the [University of Chicago](/source/University_of_Chicago) after his niece, Lucille Norton, allegedly told him she was studying *[The Communist Manifesto](/source/The_Communist_Manifesto)* there.[9] He wrote a letter to the university's president, [Robert Maynard Hutchins](/source/Robert_Maynard_Hutchins), and trustees declaring his intention to pull Norton out of the university.[10] The letter received considerable attention from Chicago's press, including the *[Chicago Herald-Examiner](/source/Chicago_Herald-Examiner)*. The [Illinois Senate](/source/Illinois_Senate) opened an investigation into the university, but the hearings were unable to find evidence of [communist](/source/Communism) teachings. Afterwards, Walgreen apologized to Hutchins and donated $12 million to the university in 1937. The two later became friends, with Hutchins even delivering a eulogy at Walgreen's funeral.[8]

### Family

Both his son, [Charles Rudolph Walgreen Jr.](/source/Charles_Rudolph_Walgreen_Jr.), and his grandson, [Charles R. Walgreen III](/source/Charles_Walgreen_III), played prominent roles in the company he founded.[11] His daughter, Ruth Walgreen, married [Justin Whitlock Dart](/source/Justin_Whitlock_Dart_Sr.), who left the Walgreens company after they divorced and went on to control the rival [Rexall](/source/Rexall) Drug Stores in 1943.[12] Ruth, in her adult years a published poet, eventually remarried and began spending winters in [Tucson, Arizona](/source/Tucson%2C_Arizona), where, she helped establish the [Poetry Center](/source/University_of_Arizona_Poetry_Center) at the [University of Arizona](/source/University_of_Arizona) in 1960.[13]

## Legacy

Walgreen's donations facilitated the construction of an airport in his hometown of Dixon in 1934. In 1964, the airport was renamed the [Charles R. Walgreen Field](/source/Dixon_Municipal_Airport), with pilot [Merrill Meigs](/source/Merrill_C._Meigs), a friend of Walgreen, delivering a dedication address.[14]

Walgreen donated $12 million to the [University of Chicago](/source/University_of_Chicago) in 1937, establishing the Walgreen Foundation at the school. The foundation funded lectures on American society until the 1950s.[7][8]

In 2006, Walgreen was inducted into the [Labor Hall of Honor](/source/Labor_Hall_of_Honor), run by the [United States Department of Labor](/source/United_States_Department_of_Labor).[15]

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** [\[1\]](http://news.walgreens.com/article_print.cfm?article_id=2822) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20110726092010/http://news.walgreens.com/article_print.cfm?article_id=2822) July 26, 2011, at the [Wayback Machine](/source/Wayback_Machine)

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** Charles R. Walgreen obituary, Dixon Evening Telegraph, Dec. 12, 1939, p. 12.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** [America's Corner Store: Walgreen's Prescription for Success](https://books.google.com/books?id=mBeukWeLRmcC) Google Books

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** ["BACKTRACKING"](http://www.thezephyr.com/backtrack/cwalgreen.htm). Thezephyr.com. Retrieved December 11, 2014.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["U.S. Department of Labor - Labor Hall of Fame - Charles R. Walgreen"](https://web.archive.org/web/20090510075313/https://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/laborhall/2006_walgreen.htm). Archived from [the original](http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/laborhall/2006_walgreen.htm) on May 10, 2009. Retrieved June 17, 2009.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** ["LEE COUNTY ILLINOIS GENEALOGY AND HISTORY"](http://genealogytrails.com/ill/lee/leewalgreen.html). Genealogytrails.com. Retrieved December 11, 2014.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:1_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:1_7-1) ["Charles R. Walgreen"](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-R-Walgreen). *[Encyclopædia Britannica](/source/Encyclop%C3%A6dia_Britannica)*. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-:0_8-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-:0_8-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-:0_8-2) Melendez, Steven (August 12, 2024). ["Charles R. Walgreen's anti-communist crusade"](https://chicagoreader.com/news-politics/walgreens-university-chicago-communism/). *[Chicago Reader](/source/Chicago_Reader)*. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-9)** [Boyer, John](/source/John_W._Boyer). ["Dean John Boyer, AM'69, PhD'75, tells the story behind his new book, The University of Chicago: A History"](https://thecore.uchicago.edu/Winter2016/departments/oral-history.shtml). *The Core: College Magazine of the University of Chicago*. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-10)** ["Education: Chicago & Communism"](https://time.com/archive/6761553/education-chicago-communism/). *Time*. April 22, 1935. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)** Hilton, John (February 8, 2014). ["All in the Family"](https://annarborobserver.com/all-in-the-family/). *Ann Arbor Observer*. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-12)** ["Marriage and the Job"](https://www.nytimes.com/1971/08/08/archives/marriage-and-the-job.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. August 8, 1971. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-13)** Star, Elaine Raines Arizona Daily (April 26, 2009). ["The Walgreen heiress who loved poetry"](https://tucson.com/article_b6af6a58-a614-54a2-bc21-29b0bb01b2a1.html). *Arizona Daily Star*. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-14)** Wadsworth, Tom (December 6, 2024). ["A piece of Dixon history: How Charles Walgreen supported Dixon"](https://www.shawlocal.com/sauk-valley/2024/12/06/a-piece-of-dixon-history-how-charles-walgreen-supported-dixon/). *Shaw Local News*. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-15)** ["Hall of Honor Inductees"](https://web.archive.org/web/20250725105259/https://www.dol.gov/general/aboutdol/hallofhonor/inductees). *DOL*. Archived from [the original](https://www.dol.gov/general/aboutdol/hallofhonor/inductees) on July 25, 2025. Retrieved July 31, 2025.

## Sources

- Griffin, Marie. *Industry 'Legends' Deserve Recognition* (Drug Store News, October 9, 1995)

- Ingham, John N. *Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders* (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1983)

- Van Doren, Charles, ed. *Webster's American Biographies* (Springfield, MA: G. & C. Merriam Co., 1979)

## External links

- [Walgreens Official Website](http://www.walgreens.com/default.jsp)

v t e Walgreens Boots Alliance Subsidiaries Alliance Healthcare Boots Boots Opticians Drugstore.com Duane Reade Farmacias Benavides Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals (50%) No. 7 Walgreens Walgreens Health Services Predecessors Alliance Boots Cunningham Drug Dollond & Aitchison Drug Fair Farmacias El Amal Happy Harry's Kerr Drug USA Drug People Stefano Pessina Elizabeth Fagan Simon Roberts Charles Rudolph Walgreen Charles Rudolph Walgreen Jr. Gregory Wasson Jim Skinner Jesse Boot, 1st Baron Trent John Boot, 2nd Baron Trent John Boot Ornella Barra Yves Romestan Randy Lewis Stewart Adams Sir Gordon Hobday Kathleen Wilson-Thompson Related Grupo Sanborns Ibuprofen Intercom Plus Schoep's Ice Cream Strepsils Wag's Walgreen Drug Store Historic Site

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Charles Rudolph Walgreen](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Rudolph_Walgreen) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Rudolph_Walgreen?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.