McCormick family | |
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Current region | Chicago, Illinois Virginia |
Place of origin | County Londonderry, Northern Ireland |
Founded | 1700s |
Founder | Thomas McCormick |
Connected families | Medill, Rockefeller |
The McCormick family of Chicago and Virginia is an American family of Scottish and Scotch-Irish descent that attained prominence and fortune starting with the invention of the McCormick Reaper, a machine that revolutionized agriculture and established the modern grain trade by beginning the mechanization of the harvesting of grain. Through the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company and later, the International Harvester Company and other investments, the McCormicks became one of the wealthiest families in America. The name became ubiquitous in agriculture starting in the 19th century and the press dubbed the McCormicks the "Reaper Kings". Later generations expanded into media and publishing (Tribune Company), finance (William Blair & Company), and real estate (McCormick Estates).[ citation needed ] Various family members were well known as civic leaders. They are descended from an influential leader of modern agriculture, inventor Robert McCormick Jr. (1780–1846), and Mary Ann "Polly" Hall of Steeles Tavern, Virginia. The family is Presbyterian.
Three branches: (1) Cyrus-the McCormick Blaines and the Rockefeller McCormicks. (2) William-the Deering McCormicks, the Medill McCormicks, and the McCormick Blairs. (3) Leander-the Hall McCormicks, the McCormick-Goodharts, and the Hamilton McCormicks. [1]
The following is a list of companies in which the McCormick family have held a controlling or otherwise significant interest.
The McCormicks are remembered through their philanthropy and projects named in their honor, including:
Cyrus Hall McCormick was an American inventor and businessman who founded the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, which later became part of the International Harvester Company in 1902. Originally from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, he and many members of the McCormick family became prominent residents of Chicago. McCormick has been simplistically credited as the single inventor of the mechanical reaper.
Graceland Cemetery is a large historic garden cemetery located in the north side community area of Uptown, in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Established in 1860, its main entrance is at the intersection of Clark Street and Irving Park Road. Among the cemetery's 121 acres (49 ha) are the burial sites of several well-known Chicagoans.
Robert Rutherford "Colonel" McCormick was an American lawyer, businessman and anti-war activist.
Edith Rockefeller McCormick was an American socialite, daughter of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller.
Leander James McCormick was an American inventor, manufacturer, philanthropist, and businessman and a member of the McCormick family of Chicago and Virginia. Along with his elder brothers Cyrus and William, he is regarded as one of the fathers of modern agriculture due to his part in the development of the McCormick Reaper and what became the International Harvester Company. He also owned and developed vast amounts of real estate in downtown Chicago and Lake Forest, Illinois. In 1885, he donated one of the world's largest telescopes to the University of Virginia.
Robert Hall McCormick was an American inventor who invented numerous devices including a version of the reaper which his eldest son Cyrus McCormick patented in 1834 and became the foundation of the International Harvester Company. Although he lived his life in rural Virginia, he was patriarch of the McCormick family that became influential throughout the world, especially in large cities such as Chicago, Washington, D.C., and New York City.
William Sanderson McCormick was an American businessman who developed the company that became the major producer of agricultural equipment in the 19th century. The business became the International Harvester corporation after his death. Although he died relatively young with most of the fame going to his brothers, his extended McCormick family continued to be influential in the politics and business of Chicago.
Robert Sanderson McCormick was an American diplomat. Born in rural Virginia, he was part of the extended McCormick family that became influential in Chicago.
Harold Fowler McCormick was an American businessman. He was chairman of the board of International Harvester Company and a member of the McCormick family. In 1948 he was awarded the Henry Laurence Gantt Medal by the American Management Association and the ASME.
The Cyrus McCormick Farm and Workshop is on the family farm of inventor Cyrus Hall McCormick known as Walnut Grove. Cyrus Hall McCormick improved and patented the mechanical reaper, which eventually led to the creation of the combine harvester.
Joseph Medill McCormick was part of the McCormick family of businessmen and politicians in Chicago. After working as a publisher for some time and becoming part owner of the Chicago Tribune, which his maternal grandfather had owned, he entered politics.
McCormick is a family name that originated in Ireland, Munster and later Scotland from the Irish given name. Spelling variations: Cormack, MacCormack, McCormack, McCormick, MacCormick, Carmack, Cormac, Cormach, Cormich and Cormiche. It comes from the first name of the original bearer. A person whose father was named Cormac would identify as Mc Cormac; the combination was continued as the family name by subsequent generations.
Cyrus Hall McCormick Jr. was an American businessman. He was president of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company from 1884 to 1902. His tenure was marked by bitter conflict with the union, culminating in the murder of two striking workers on May 3, 1886– the event which precipitated the Haymarket Tragedy.
Brooks McCormick was an American philanthropist and equestrian from the McCormick family that ran International Harvester. He was the chief executive officer of International Harvester in the 1970s, and was the family's final member to lead the company that they had founded.
Nancy Maria "Nettie" McCormick was an American philanthropist. Through marriage, she became a member of the prominent McCormick family.
Hickory Hill is a historic estate in Rockbridge County, Virginia.
Chauncey Brooks McCormick was an American businessman and art collector in the McCormick family.
William Grigsby McCormick was an American businessman of the influential McCormick family in Chicago, who was a co-founder of Kappa Sigma Fraternity. He also served as a Chicago alderman.
Charles A. Spring Jr. (1826–1901) was a prominent Chicago capitalist during its transition from a frontier town of 30,000 in the 1850s to an industrial metropolis of more than 1.7 million at the turn of the 20th century. He was a key figure in its rise, serving as inventor Cyrus McCormick's closest adviser and as general manager of the McCormick Harvesting Company for many years.
Frederick Emanuel McCormick-Goodhart was a British-born barrister who later moved to the United States and is known for building Langley Park in Langley Park, Maryland.
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