The Upjohn Company / William E. Upjohn
Posted by: 
S5280ft
N 42° 17.425 W 085° 34.982
16T E 616815 N 4682993
Quick Description: Located on the east side of Kalamazoo Mall Road (Burdick), between Exchange and South Streets. Parking is available.
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 4/23/2007 6:34:38 PM
Waymark Code: WM1EZQ
Views: 85
Long Description:THE UPJOHN COMPANY
The Upjohn Pill & Granule Company was founded on this site in
1886 by Dr. William E. Upjohn and his three brothers--Dr. Henry U.,
Frederick L. and Dr. James T. Upjohn. The pill-making factory began
in the basement of a commercial block, where the Upjohn brothers
turned out their specialty, "friable pills." By year's end the
company employed twelve people, manufactured 186 different
medicinal formulas and had moved to a new building on Farmer's
Alley. In 1888 the company moved again, this time to Lovell Street,
where it celebrated a century of operations in 1986. The Upjohn
Company (renamed in 1902) is a worldwide provider of
pharmaceutical, agricultural and chemical products, and health care
services.
WILLIAM E. UPJOHN
Dr. William E. Upjohn (1853-1932), founder of the Upjohn Company,
was known as Kalamazoo's "First Citizen" because of his active role
in the community. He helped institute the commission-manager form
of government and served as the city's first mayor under the new
system (1918-1921). He helped direct the construction of Bronson
Hospital (1904) and several area churches (1926). He also
established the Kalamazoo Foundation (1925) and the W. E. Upjohn
Institute for Employment Research (1932). His belief in the "happy
use of leisure time" led him to donate land for Upjohn Park (1919),
to help fund an "Art House" (1928) and a municipal golf course
(1929), and to build the Civic Auditorium (1931).
Visit Instructions:Take a photo of your GPS at the marker. We'd prefer a photo of you
with your GPS, but we realize that sometimes that's just not
possible or preferable. Also include a bit about your visit to the
marker.
NEW: Instructions for logging Missing Marker Visits.
If the Marker is missing, but still listed here, you must
provide a photo of you at the actual item historically honored.
(This should be the waymark's "default" image). Indicate in your
log that you took your photo at the Historical Location instead of
the marker, because the marker was missing. Please also still
include a bit about your visit to the site.