DEERFIELD, Ill. (AP) - Charles R. Walgreen Jr., the son of the founder of Walgreen Co. and the company's former chairman, has died. He was 100.
Walgreen died Saturday at his home in Northfield, Walgreen spokesman Michael Polzin said.
Trained as a pharmacist, Walgreen served as the company's president from the time of his father's death in 1939 until 1963, and he was chairman of the board of directors from 1963 to 1976. Walgreen's annual sales grew from $72 million to $817 million during his tenure, the Deerfield-based drugstore chain said in a statement.
'Mr. Walgreen Jr. guided the chain through World War II and the postwar expansion years and was responsible for many of the changes in pharmacy and retailing during that time,' the statement said. 'His personal goal was to raise the professional stature and working conditions of pharmacists.'
Born in Chicago on March 4, 1906, Walgreen grew up in the family business, making deliveries from his father's second store on Chicago's South Side when he was a boy.
In retirement, Walgreen obtained an ocean captain's license and sailed the world on his yacht. At age 89, he traveled to Antarctica, where a section of shoreline was named Walgreen Coast for his father by Adm. Richard E. Byrd, a family friend. The trip required him to train for a year.
Walgreen is survived by his wife, Jean, three children, 23 grandchildren and 33 great-grandchildren.
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