History of McDonald's Timeline

(1940 - Present)

The history of McDonald's traces the evolution of a single California drive-in restaurant into the world's largest fast-food corporation. Founded by Richard and Maurice McDonald in 1940 and transformed by businessman Ray Kroc beginning in 1955, the company pioneered franchise systems, standardized fast food production, and grew to serve customers in over 100 countries worldwide. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Founding and Early Years

Orange juice stand opens on Route 66

1937

In 1937, an orange juice stand on Route 66 in Monrovia, California was opened, marking the McDonald brothers' early entry into the food and beverage business before they founded their famous restaurant chain.

McDonald's Famous Barbecue era

1940 - 1948

The initial menu items were centered around barbecue and the first name the brothers used for their business was "McDonald's Famous Barbecue." In 1948, the McDonald brothers realized that most of their profits derived from the sale of hamburgers.

Image source: History of McDonald's

First McDonald's restaurant opens in San Bernardino

May 15, 1940

The American fast-food restaurant chain McDonald's was founded in 1940 by the McDonald brothers, Richard and Maurice. The brothers opened their first McDonald's restaurant on May 15, 1940 in San Bernardino, California, after opening a barbecue stand there that same year.

Brothers plan a new building design

Apr 1952

In April 1952, the brothers decided that they needed an entirely new building to achieve two goals: further efficiency improvements and a more eye-catching appearance.

Franchise fee set at $1,000

1953

The cost of becoming a McDonald's franchisee was a flat fee of $1,000 (equivalent to $12,000 in 2025). One franchisee, Charles Cox in North Hollywood, CA, would use the name "Peaks" from 1953 until 1965, but all others would be "McDonald's".

First franchise with golden arches opens in Phoenix

May 1953

Fox's stand, the first with Meston's golden arches design, opened in May 1953 at 4050 North Central Avenue and Indian School Road in Phoenix, Arizona. In late 1953, with only a rendering of Meston's design in hand, the brothers began seeking franchisees.

Downey, California stand opens

Aug 18, 1953

Williams and Landon opened their stand on August 18, 1953 at 10207 Lakewood Boulevard in Downey, California, expanding the growing chain of franchised McDonald's restaurants.

Kroc Era and Expansion

Ray Kroc discovers McDonald's

1954

In 1954, Ray Kroc, a seller of Prince Castle brand Multimixer milkshake machines, learned that the McDonald brothers were using eight of his machines at their San Bernardino restaurant, sparking his interest in the business.

Ray Kroc meets Harry J. Sonneborn

1956 - 1967

In 1956, Ray Kroc met Harry J. Sonneborn, who became a key figure in the company's financial strategy. Sonneborn and Kroc worked together until Sonneborn's resignation in 1967.

McDonald's grosses $56 million annually

1960

By 1960, McDonald's restaurants were grossing $56 million annually, demonstrating the rapid growth of the chain under Ray Kroc's leadership.

Kroc buys out the McDonald brothers for $2.7 million

1961

In 1961, Kroc's conflict over the vision of the company with the founding brothers had escalated, and he asked them how much money they wanted to leave their business to him entirely. The brothers agreed to leave for $2.7 million ($23.4 million in 2021 dollars), which Kroc did not have. The exact process by which the company was sold is not known; it is depicted as a hostile takeover by Kroc in the 2016 biographical film The Founder, but that portrayal has been disputed, and interviews from the time suggest a more voluntary transition.

Filet-O-Fish sandwich introduced

1962

In 1962, the Filet-O-Fish sandwich, billed as "the fish that catches people," was introduced, adding a seafood option to the menu.

Sonneborn resigns after disagreements with Kroc

1967

Kroc and Sonneborn disagreed over expansion of the company, leading to Sonneborn's resignation in 1967.

Big Mac created by Jim Delligatti

1967 - 1968

In 1967, the Big Mac was created by Jim Delligatti, whose franchised McDonald's was in Uniontown, Pennsylvania, and was added to McDonald's national menu the next year.

Herman Petty becomes first African American franchisee

1968

In 1968, a man named Herman Petty was the first African American to franchise a McDonald's, paving the way for greater diversity among the company's operators.

National Black McDonald's Operators Association founded

1972

In 1972, the National Black McDonald's Operators Association (NBMOA) was founded, supporting African American franchise owners within the company.

Over 3,600 U.S. restaurants

1976

By 1976, there were over 3,600 McDonald's restaurants in the U.S., reflecting the company's massive domestic growth.

Global Growth

First restaurant outside North America opens in Costa Rica

1970

In 1970, the first restaurant outside of Northern America opened in San José, Costa Rica, marking the beginning of McDonald's international expansion beyond the continent.

First European restaurant opens in Zaandam, Netherlands

1971

In 1971, McDonald's opened its first European restaurant in Zaandam, Netherlands through a joint venture with supermarket chain Albert Heijn called Family Food N.V.

First Oceania restaurant opens in Yagoona, Australia

1971

The first restaurant in Oceania opened in 1971 in Yagoona, Australia, extending the chain's reach to the Australian market.

First Asian restaurant opens in Tokyo

Jul 1971

The first restaurant in Asia opened in Tokyo, Japan in July 1971, launching McDonald's presence on the Asian continent.

First German restaurant opens in Munich

Dec 1971

In December 1971, the first German restaurant, which was then in West Germany, opened in Munich–Obergiesing.

Morris brothers granted New Zealand franchise

May 1975

When Wally and Hugh Morris approached the corporation in 1974 to bring McDonald's into New Zealand, they were firmly shunned by Kroc who, citing a visit to the country, stated, "There aren't any people... I never met a more dead-than-alive hole in my life." The Morris brothers were finally granted a franchise in May 1975.

First New Zealand restaurant opens in Porirua

Jun 1976

The first New Zealand restaurant opened in June 1976 in Porirua, near Wellington, to much more success than the corporation had predicted.

First Southeast Asia restaurant opens in Singapore

1979

In 1979, the first McDonald's restaurant in Southeast Asia opened at Liat Towers in Orchard Road, Singapore.

First Malaysia outlet opens in Kuala Lumpur

Apr 29, 1982

The first McDonald's outlet in Malaysia opened at Jalan Bukit Bintang on April 29, 1982.

First Mexico restaurant opens in Mexico City

Oct 29, 1985

On October 29, 1985, Saul Kahan, first Joint Venture Partner, opened the first McDonald's restaurant in Mexico in Pedregal, Mexico City.

Prepaid cards introduced in Japan

1988

In 1988, McDonald's Japan introduced prepaid cards at three of its outlets in Tokyo, an early innovation in payment methods for the chain.

First Mainland China restaurant opens in Shenzhen

Oct 1990

The first McDonald's in Mainland China opened in Dongmen, Shenzhen in October 1990, marking the brand's entry into the Chinese market.

Middle East expansion begins

1993 - 1994

McDonald's expanded in the Middle East in 1993–1994, opening its first stores in Israel and Saudi Arabia followed by Kuwait, Oman, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates.

McDonald's Japan's 1,000th outlet opens

Sep 1993

McDonald's Japan's 1,000th outlet opened in September 1993, demonstrating the scale of the brand's success in the Japanese market.

First kosher McDonald's opens in Israel

1995

In 1995, the first kosher McDonald's restaurant opened in Israel, catering to Jewish dietary laws.

First Bolivia outlet opens in Santa Cruz

1997

In 1997, the first McDonald's outlet in Bolivia was opened in Santa Cruz de la Sierra.

McDonald's exits Bolivia

Nov 2002 - Nov 30, 2002

In November 2002, McDonald's closed all its locations in Bolivia, due to cultural rejection from citizens and the government, but especially due to losses from franchisee Arcos Dorados, enabling its exit from the Bolivian market effective November 30, 2002, making Bolivia and Cuba the only Latin American countries without McDonald's.

Modern Era

1984 Olympics promotion backfires

1984

In 1984, the company ran a promotion for the 1984 Olympics saying "When the U.S. wins, you win," giving away free food when American athletes medaled, a promotion that proved far more costly than anticipated due to the U.S. team's success.

San Ysidro McDonald's massacre

Jul 18, 1984

On July 18, 1984, there was a mass shooting at a McDonald's restaurant in San Ysidro, California, one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history at the time.

First McDonald's Express locations open

1991

The first McDonald's Express locations opened in 1991, offering a smaller-format, limited-menu version of the restaurant.

Taiwan McDonald's bombings

Apr 28, 1992 - Apr 29, 1992

On April 28 and 29, 1992, the Taiwan McDonald's bombings occurred when bombs were planted in or near various McDonald's restaurants in Taiwan as part of an extortion attempt, causing the death of a policeman and injuries to four civilians, including two young children, and the temporary closure of all 57 McDonald's locations in that country.

Image source: Taiwan McDonald's bombings

Electrocution at Manchester Arndale store

Oct 12, 1992

On October 12, 1992, Mark Hopkins was electrocuted at McDonald's Manchester Arndale store, a tragic incident at the UK location.

Extra Value Meal introduced with Jurassic Park tie-in

1993

The Extra Value Meal, a burger, fries and drink combination deal, was introduced from 1993, originally as part of a Jurassic Park tie-in.

McFlurry invented in Canada

1995

In 1995, the McFlurry was first created by Canadian McDonald's franchise owner Ron McLellan in Bathurst, New Brunswick, becoming one of the chain's most popular desserts.

Halal food offered in Dearborn, Michigan

2000

In 2000, a McDonald's in Dearborn, Michigan in Greater Detroit was the first one in Michigan and the only one east of the Mississippi River to offer halal food for Muslim customers.

Record $27 billion revenue announced

Jan 2012

In January 2012, the company announced that revenue for 2011 reached an all-time high of $27 billion, and that 2,400 restaurants would be updated and 1,300 new ones opened worldwide.

All-day breakfast introduced

2015

In response to customer demand, McDonald's began to offer a limited selection of its breakfast menu all day starting in 2015.

Munich shooting begins at McDonald's

Jul 22, 2016

On July 22, 2016, the 2016 Munich shooting took place when David Sonboly, an 18-year-old German-Iranian man, opened fire at a McDonald's restaurant known to be frequented by immigrants, before shooting at bystanders in the street outside and then in Olympia shopping mall, and then killing himself.

Image source: 2016 Munich shooting

Operations suspended in Russia

Mar 8, 2022

On March 8, 2022, McDonald's suspended operations at all 850 of its locations in Russia, in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine twelve days prior.

Russian locations relaunch as Vkusno & tochka

Jun 12, 2022

The brand relaunched on June 12, 2022 as 'Vkusno & tochka' (Вкусно и точка, Tasty and that's it) by local franchisee Alexander Govor, replacing McDonald's former Russian operations.

Image source: Vkusno i tochka

McDonald's buys Florida franchisee Caspers Company

Jul 2022

In July 2022, McDonald's bought its Florida franchisee Caspers Company, bringing those restaurants under direct corporate ownership.

Key Facts

McDonald's was founded in 1940 in San Bernardino, California, by brothers Richard and Maurice McDonald as a barbecue restaurant before reinventing itself as a hamburger stand in 1948.
Ray Kroc joined the company in 1954 as a franchise agent and opened his first franchised McDonald's restaurant in Des Plaines, Illinois, in 1955, later purchasing the company from the McDonald brothers in 1961.
Ronald McDonald, the company's famous clown mascot, was introduced in 1963 and became one of the most recognizable advertising icons in the world.
The Big Mac was created in 1967 by franchisee Jim Delligatti in Pennsylvania and became one of the chain's signature menu items.
McDonald's expanded internationally starting with Canada in 1967 and now operates over 40,000 restaurants in more than 100 countries, serving roughly 69 million customers daily.

Source

This History of McDonald's timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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