Arvid Emanuel Kallen (July 24, 1895 – April 1969) was a General Motors executive until his retirement in 1959.

Background

Arvid Emanuel Kallen was born in

Öland Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area ...

, Sweden. He came to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

from Sweden in 1915 intending to study medicine. The charity of friends provided train fare to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

where his industrial career began. He attended Carolina K. Kalmar college, Sweden;

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, and

DePaul University DePaul University is a private, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul. In 1998, it became the largest Ca ...

. Kallen served in the United States Army during World War I as a translator.

Career

In 1928 when the

Yellow Coach Manufacturing Company The Yellow Coach Manufacturing Company (informally Yellow Coach) was an early manufacturer of passenger buses in the United States. Between 1923 and 1943, Yellow Coach built transit buses, electric-powered trolley buses, and parlor coaches. Fou ...

, of which he was president, was purchased by General Motors, he was named treasurer of the division and later president of what became the GM Truck & Coach Division. Although GM continued with the Yellow Coach product line, the Yellow Coach badge gave way to the GM nameplate in 1944. Kallen was the Director of the Recess Club; Treasurer, Vice president, and President of

Oakland Hills Country Club Oakland Hills Country Club is a private golf club in the central United States, located in Bloomfield Township, Michigan, a suburb northwest of Detroit. It consists of two 18-hole courses designed by Donald Ross: the South Course (1918) and the ...

; a Member of The Swedish Club of Chicago; and an Honorary member of the New York City Bankers Club. He died in Boynton Beach, Florida

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kallen, Arvid 1895 births 1969 deaths People from Öland General Motors former executives Swedish emigrants to the United States Northwestern University alumni DePaul University alumni