The Coon Chicken Inn (jan 1, 1925 – jan 1, 1950)

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The Coon Chicken restaurant was founded by Maxon Lester Graham. He opened the first restaurant in Utah in 1925 and eventually a chain of restaurants opened in Seattle, Portland and Salt Lake City. The business immediately became popular. The restaurant was filled at the time with what is now known as black memorabilia, Black figurines, and African American caricatures. A head of a bald black man with a winking eye and a smiling grin formed the entry way so guests could walk in through the mouth. The inclusion of such stereotypes and caricatures of African Americans became an effect way for whites to reinforce the myth of the old south in the collective national memory. The restaurant enforce the stereotype of African Americans as chicken lovers and it became identifiable and marketable enough to attract white consumers who viewed the images as comedic.

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