Muscatine County, Iowa FAMILY STORIES

FRED L. ANGELL ~ Doing Business as Maid Rite

Submitted by Connie McDaniel Hall, September 8, 2023

Photograph of Patent Registered Apr. 5, 1927         Trade-Mark 226, 237 United States Patient Office Fred L. Angell, Doing Business as Maid Rite Hamburg Company, of Muscatine Iowa Act of February 20 1905 Application filed November 19, 1926. Serial No. 240,287 STATEMENT To all who it may concern;      Be it known that I, Fred L. Angell a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Muscatine, County of Muscatine, State of Iowa, and doing business under the name of Maid Rite Hamburg Company at No. 212 East Second Street, Muscatine, Iowa, have adopted and used the trade-mark shown in the accompanying drawing so claim being made to the word “Hamburg” apart from the mark as shown in the drawing, for SANDWICHES, in Class No. 46 Foods and ingredients of foods.      The trade-mark has been continuously used in my business since August 1, 1925.      The trade-mark is applied or affixed to the goods by printing the mark directly on the glassine wrappers in which the goods are sold.      FRED L. ANGELL.

Muscatine, Iowa Greenwood Cemetery “Walk Through History Tour”, by Lynn McCleary
Fred is buried in the Riverview Addition, Block 46, Lot 76.

     The hamburger is an American institution. Last year Americans consumed 5.4 billion of them served in commercial restaurants.

     The hamburger’s roots can be traced back to the Middle Ages. In the 1700 and 1800’s German trading partners developed the Hamburg steak - fried beef seasoned with onions - and brought it to America.

     As the burger evolved folks around the country developed their own special variation of the hamburger. In San Francisco you can get a “Sunshine Burger” complete with sprouts, scallions and avocado; in Lincoln, Nebraska you can get the “Jiffy Burger” with peanut butter and bacon; and in Sault St. Marie, Michigan you can feed 10 to 12 people with a five pound burger called the “Family Burger”.

     Every part of the United States has a different take on what makes a good burger. In the Midwest we tend to like our burgers with pickles and onions.

     Everyone has a favorite burger place. And in Muscatine … well, we’re getting a little ahead of our story now, it goes something like this …

     Little did William and Clara Angell of Maquoketa, Iowa know that their tiny baby born to them that spring day of May 10th, 1894 would go on to be an icon in the world of burger restaurateurs.

     After marrying his sweetheart Rosetta, Fred Angell moved to Muscatine. It was here that he opened his first small restaurant in 1926. For ten cents a hungry customer could have his hunger satisfied. The advertising slogan read “A meal for a dime.” Customers came, ate and enjoyed. Word spread and the business grew.

     By the end of 1927, Fred knew that he had a “hit” on his hands and he patented his Maid-Rite, loose meat sandwiches. He developed a trademark and began selling franchises in territory ranging from Rockford, IL to Tulsa, OK.

     The franchise rights included the protective name and secret formula for menu items. The buildings were to have the same design with a white exterior with red strips.

     All of this success did not come easily. It took a lot of hard work and determination. In the early days Fred would butcher and grind his own meat in the basement. He also made the ice cream from scratch, and mixed the private label root beer.

     Fred’s son , Francis (Franny), came into the business in the 1930’s. He traveled selling franchises.

     Folks who have moved away from Muscatine and come back for a visit seem to gravitate naturally toward a Maid-Rite when they return. They just have to have a Maid-Rite and a root beer before they head back out of town. Some die-hard fans have been known to purchase them in quantities of up to 50 sandwiches at a time, to take home to their freezers.

     Though the down-town Maid-Rite has closed, Muscatine may still boast from its’ location at 3414 North Port Drive in Muscatine (its located off of Route 61, across from Menards).

     The Maid-Rites, root beer and ice cream that were popular in 1927 are still going strong 97 years later!

     Fred Angell died at his home on October 11, 1950 due to a heart ailment. He was 56 years old. He couldn’t have begun to know what a deep and lasting tradition he had created for the people in the city of Muscatine.