George Armour

Life & Legacy

George Armour (24 April 1812 – 13 June 1881) was a Scottish American businessman and philanthropist involved in the development of grain elevator infrastructure in Chicago. He was credited with developing the grain elevator system, establishing grain trading standards as director and president of the Chicago Board of Trade (CBT), founding the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad (CBQ), Commercial Club of Chicago, YMCA of Chicago, Merchants' Loan & Trust Company (MLTC), the precursor to Continental Illinois, and the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts which later became the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and Art Institute of Chicago. He served as a director of several notable companies during his career.
As founder of Armour, Dole & Co. and other firms, he helped build the first extensive system of large mechanized grain elevators in Chicago, enabling the shipment of grains from the American Midwest to destinations around the world. During his tenure, the CBT standardized the grading and selling of grains and established the first commodity futures markets. He was "popularly known as the father of the grain elevator system" or as a "rapacious, blood sucking insect."