- E. W. Kelley
E.W. "Ed" Kelley is considered the "modern day" founder of
Steak n Shake , a chain of sit-down, old-fashioned style restaurants known for theirSteakburgers and hand-dipped milkshakes. In 1981, E.W. Kelley & Associates, a group led by E.W. Kelley, bought controlling interest inSteak n Shake , and grew the company from a small chain to the more than 450 location chain it is today (2006).Originally from
Sharpsville, Indiana , Kelley attendedIndiana University 's (IU) School of Business in the 1930s. While at IU, he founded the Accounting Club, chaired IU Sing, was president of the IU student body, and was a member ofSigma Chi fraternity. He graduated in 1939.Kelley ran
Bird's Eye , a division ofGeneral Foods , and thought up adding pearl onions to frozen peas. He later headedFairmont Foods , where he helped develop theKlondike Bar , directed the roll-outs of Tang andCool Whip , created parts of theLean Cuisine line, and broughtGrey Poupon to America, and was responsible for the creation ofA-1 Steaksauce .He was founding partner of Kelley & Partners, Ltd. and taught at the
Columbia Business School .Kelley has always been philanthropic, having given millions away to IU and Howard Community Hospital, now know as
Howard Regional Hospital , inKokomo, IN . He donated to Indiana University-Kokomo, (IUK), for the Kelley Student Center, Kelley House, the library building and the E.W. Kelley Scholarship fund. He gave money in 1999 to establish the E.W. Kelley Chair in Business Administration at IU Bloomington, and $23 million to establish the IU Bloomington's Business School's Kelley Scholars program in 1997, which led IU to rename the School of Business to theKelley School of Business . He also supported the Bloomington campus' Alumni center, School of Music, the Mellencamp Pavilion, and the Alva Prickett Chair in Accounting.E.W. Kelley maintained a home in Sharpsville until his death, and also a home in
Florida . He had turned the old family farm, located onU.S. Route 31 about 6 miles south ofKokomo, Indiana , into theKelley Historical Agricultural Museum .Other family interests include Kelley Farms, which has since merged with
Adler Seeds of Sharpsville, just across the road from the E.W. Kelley home. Kelley Farms was run by E.W.'s brother Bill Kelley, who also owned Shady Kennels and the former Red Carpet Motel outside of Sharpsville. Adler Seeds was founded by neighbor and friend Howard Adler.E.W. Kelley died on
July 3 ,2003 at the age of 86.
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