Highlights Archives
Hamburger Heaven in Seymour
Hamburgers are one of America's favorite foods. We have taken the idea of ground beef between bread combined with a baffling variety of condiments to the point that the hamburger may be the icon of American cuisine. Though the hamburger's popularity is clear, its birthplace remains a subject of fierce debate. Many towns have laid claim to its invention, but only one town has a Hamburger Hall of Fame, a Hamburger festival and the "world's largest hamburger parade" — Seymour, Wisconsin.
Seymour's story begins in 1885 at the Outagamie County Fair. Charles Nagreen, then 15, had brought his wagon to the fair intending to sell meatballs, but he soon discovered that people didn't want meatballs — it's hard to eat something round while walking around the fair (witness the tremendous variety of foodstuffs sold on a stick at fairs today). So, the ever-resourceful Nagreen flattened his meatballs and put them between two slices of bread for easy transport. His sandwich caught on, and Nagreen soon became known as "Hamburger Charlie" — and Seymour, by extension, as the home of the hamburger. Nagreen continued to sell hamburgers at the fair until his death in 1951.
Now other towns may dispute where the hamburger first appeared — Athens, Texas, Hamburg, New York, and New Haven, Connecticut, among them — but the residents of Seymour are quite sure it was Seymour and remain fiercely loyal to Hamburger Charlie. Seymour also holds the record for the world's largest hamburger, 5,520 pounds, served at Burger Fest in 1989.
Learn more about Seymour's claim to hamburger fame at the Wisconsin Historical Museum on September 5, when Bill Collar, who plays the role of Charlie at the annual Burger Fest, discusses The Birth of the Burger. And while you are there, see one of the original Big Boy sculptures from the Big Boy restaurants in the window.
:: Posted September 1, 2006
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