In the 1850s, Chicago foods trade business rivals George Armour and George W. Dole joined forces in the grain trade, forming the roots of Armour, Dole, & Co.
[1] After George W. Dole died in 1860,[2] Armour joined with Charles Sydney Dole[3] (a nephew of George W. Dole)[4] and James Henry Doyle[3] and Wesley Munger,[5] together running Armour, Dole & Co.[6] The company operated grain elevators at the depot of the CBQ with a capacity of 850,000 bushels[5] Between 1860 and 1867, the company built five grain elevators next to the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy railyards (between Halsted Street and Loomis Street).
After the American Civil War, Armour, Dole & Co. remained among the city's leading grain warehousers.
[1] In 1872, the company announced plans for a million-bushel facility on the South Branch of the Chicago River.
[1] By the early 1880s, the company's facilities had grown to hold 6.3 million bushels.