Joy Morton
| Joy Morton | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
September 27, 1855 Nebraska City, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | May 10, 1934 (aged 78) Lisle, Illinois, U.S. |
| Occupation | Director of Morton Salt |
| Known for | Founder of Morton Salt |
| Spouse(s) | Carrie Jane Lake (1880-1915, her death) Margaret Gray (1917-1934, his death) |
| Children | Jean Cudahy Sterling Morton |
| Parent(s) |
Julius Sterling Morton Caroline Joy French |
Joy Sterling Morton (September 27, 1855 – May 10, 1934) founded the Morton Salt Company and the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois.
He was born on September 27, 1855 in Nebraska City, Nebraska. His mother, Caroline Joy, was an accomplished artist, musician, and gardener. His father, Julius Sterling Morton, a newspaperman and a leader in Nebraska territorial and state politics, was central to the founding of Arbor Day. J. Sterling Morton served as United States Secretary of Agriculture in the second administration (1893–1897) of President Grover Cleveland.
In 1880, Morton married Carrie Jane Lake, the daughter of Nebraska Supreme Court Judge George Lake. They had two children, Jean, who married Joseph Cudahy of the Chicago meat packing company, and Sterling, who married Sophia Preston Owsley, a granddaughter of Carter Henry Harrison, a popular mayor of post-Civil War Chicago. Two years after Joy Morton’s first wife died in 1915, he married Margaret Gray, who became a local leader in health care.
At 15, Morton began to manage the family farm and estate. He also took a job at the local bank. At age 18, he fell ill with spinal meningitis. Needing physical exercise and an outdoor environment for full recovery, he farmed his own land for two years. Later, he worked for railroads in Omaha, Nebraska, and Aurora, Illinois, before joining a Chicago salt distribution company in 1880. By 1886 he owned the firm, naming it Joy Morton and Company, and branched out into the distribution and processing of agricultural products in Nebraska and Illinois. In 1910 he incorporated his salt firm as the Morton Salt Company. He remained the company's president until 1930 when Daniel Peterkin, Sr. became president while he served as chairman of the board until his death in 1934.
He died on May 9, 1934 in Lisle, Illinois.
...
Wikipedia