From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Harold Pierce
Harold Pierce
Harold Pierce (August 11, 1917 – March 8, 1988) was an ness and began expanding it outside of Chicago. Willa
African-American entrepreneur who founded the suc- died on January 21, 2003 in Beaverville.
cessful Harold’s Chicken Shack restaurant chain in Chica-
go.
Pierce was born in Midway, Alabama and moved to
References
Chicago in 1943 from Freemanville, Alabama to work as • "Harold Pierce, 70, Dies, Chicken Franchise Founder,"
a chauffeur for Jack Stern, a furniture store owner. By Jet, March 28, 1988
1950, he was running a small restaurant with his wife, • "Harold Pierce, 70, founder of Harold’s Chicken
Hilda, on 39th Street. The H & H specialized in chicken Shacks," Chicago Sun-Times, March 11, 1988.
feet and dumplings. Pierce thought that he could adapt • Social Security Death Index
his recipe for fried chicken, and a friend, Gene Rosen,
who ran a poultry shop nearby, offered him some chick-
ens to experiment with. The resultant recipe caused
External links
Pierce to open Harold’s Chicken Shack at 47th and Green- • Sula, Mike. "The First Family of Fried Chicken",
wood in 1950. Chicago Reader, April 14, 2006.
He franchised the idea out to friends and family who Persondata
opened additional Harold Chicken Shacks throughout Name Pierce, Harold
Chicago. One of Pierce’s stipulations was that they pur-
Alternative names
chase their chickens from Rosen. Otherwise, Pierce didn’t
interfere with the management of the stores, which led Short description
to deviations in the techniques, flavors, and qualities of Date of birth August 11, 1917
the product as well as variations in the menu from one Place of birth
restaurant to another.
After retiring in the early 1980s, he moved to Date of death March 8, 1988
Beaverville, Illinois, where he indulged in a passion for Place of death
raising hunting dogs.
Pierce died in Kankakee, Illinois of prostate cancer in
1988. His second wife, Willa, took over running the busi-
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Harold_Pierce&oldid=450560922"
Categories:
• 1917 births
• 1988 deaths
• Fast-food chain founders
• People from Bullock County, Alabama
• Deaths from prostate cancer
• Cancer deaths in Illinois
• People from Chicago, Illinois
• American restaurateurs
• Chicago, Illinois stubs
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