Myrtle R. Walgreen
Born: July 5, 1879 in Carbondale, Illinois
Died: August 20, 1971 in Chicago, Illinois Pen Name: None Connection to Illinois: Walgreen was born in Carbondale and grew up in Normal. She moved to Chicago after her marriage in 1902. Biography: Walgreen, nee Myrtle Ruth Norton, grew up in central Illinois, came of age at the Chicago World's Fair (1893), and in 1902 married a young pharmacist, Charles R. Walgreen. In the years leading up to World War I, while raising two children, Charles R. Walgreen, Jr. (1906-2007) and Ruth Stephan (1910-1974), she prepared salads, soups, and pies at home for Walgreen's year-round soda fountain. She took up gardening at 50, flying at 55, and photography at 60. She had at least 12,000 color photographs “carefully sorted and indexed” in her collection as of 1958. Myrtle's photographs of Hazelwood were displayed at the Art Institute of Chicago at least 12 times. She was both an Associate (APSA in 1949) and Fellow (FPSA in 1953) of the Photographic Society of America. She was also a contributor (editor and photographer) to Together: The Midmonth Magazine for Methodist Families. At age 84, Myrtle wrote an autobiography, published in 1963, entitled Never a Dull Day, which apparently was her personal motto. In her book, she references being involved with and donating money to the following organizations: 4-H, Methodist Temple in Chicago, the Photographic Society of America, Shimer College, the University of Chicago, the Garden Club of Illinois, the American Red Cross, and the Lincoln Gardens in Springfield. She was a founding member of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial Garden Foundation in Springfield, Illinois. The original bridge at the Lincoln Memorial Garden and Nature Center was a birthday gift from Charles to Myrtle. The couple also gave money to the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, Amour Institute, Moody Bible Institute, the Chicago Musical College, several theological seminaries, the Art Institute of Chicago, and Chicago public libraries. The first woman elected to the 4-H board of directors, she was active in the American-Scandinavian Foundation and the Chicago Historical Society. In 1961, Northland College (Ashland, Wisconsin) recognized her contributions to photography with an honorary Doctor of Laws. Ronald Reagan, her lifelong friend, had as a youth caddied for her husband in Dixon.
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