Family Business Legacy

Chicago

Gustavus Swift: The Cold-Chain King

Gustavus Franklin Swift turned $25 at a Cape Cod kitchen table in 1855 into a company posting $160 million in annual sales by 1903 (~$6 billion today). The butcher who built the cold-chain architecture JBS and Lineage Logistics still run 146 years later.

Chicago

Matthew Laflin: The Powder Man

CBOT founder Matthew Laflin's 1840 gunpowder partnership with Solomon Smith created a dynasty spanning Northern Trust ($18.7T AUC), Illinois Tool Works ($86.6B), and Briar Hall. In 2025, BNY Mellon tried to buy Northern Trust. The family said no.