Charles Michael Harper (September 23, 1927 – May 28, 2016) was an American businessman who led

ConAgra Foods Conagra Brands, Inc. (formerly ConAgra Foods) is an American consumer packaged goods holding company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Conagra makes and sells products under various brand names that are available in supermarkets, restaurants, ...

from 1975 to 1993, growing the company by many

acquisitions Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are business transactions in which the ownership of companies, other business organizations, or their operating units are transferred to or consolidated with another company or business organization. As an aspect ...

. He was born in

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

, attended

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

as an undergraduate, and earned his

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

. During his tenure at ConAgra, sales rose from $636 million in 1974 to $9 billion in 1987. Some of the largest sales increases came in frozen-food and poultry.

Demolition of historic site

In 1988, ConAgra threatened to relocate from Omaha to Denver, Chicago or Minneapolis if the city did not help find a new location for its headquarters. Harper, the

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

of ConAgra at the time, requested that the city of Omaha demolish a historic site, one of the largest on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

. Omaha approved the demolition of over 20 historic structures in

Jobbers Canyon Historic District Jobbers Canyon Historic District was a large industrial and warehouse area comprising 24 buildings located in downtown Omaha, Nebraska, US. It was roughly bound by Farnam Street on the north, South Eighth Street on the east, Jackson Street on the ...

, a 19th-century

warehouse district This is a list of notable warehouse districts. A warehouse district or warehouse row is an area found in many urban setting known for being the current or former location of numerous warehouses. Logistically, warehouses are often located in indust ...

along the banks of the Missouri River in Downtown Omaha, Nebraska. The demolition, which had prompted protests and lawsuits from historic preservationists, made room for a sprawling new corporate campus and headquarters. Harper had described the structures as "some big, ugly red brick buildings."

Donation to University of Chicago Booth School of Business

In 2007, the

Hyde Park Hyde Park may refer to: Places England * Hyde Park, London, a Royal Park in Central London * Hyde Park, Leeds, an inner-city area of north-west Leeds * Hyde Park, Sheffield, district of Sheffield * Hyde Park, in Hyde, Greater Manchester Austra ...

campus of the

University of Chicago Booth School of Business The University of Chicago Booth School of Business (Chicago Booth or Booth) is the graduate business school of the University of Chicago. Founded in 1898, Chicago Booth is the second-oldest business school in the U.S. and is associated with 10 N ...

was renamed the Charles M. Harper Center after Harper made the then-largest donation in the school's history.Harper's historic gift provides GSB center with name, support
Accessed October 31, 2012.

References

1927 births 2016 deaths American food industry business executives University of Chicago Booth School of Business alumni 20th-century American businesspeople {{US-business-bio-1920s-stub