Bob Evans (restaurateur)
He turned a simple recipe for homemade sausage into a beloved American restaurant empire, starting from a single 12-stool diner.
1918–2007 (age 89)·American restaurateur·Birthday: May 30·The Greatest Generation
Biography
Bob Evans was a farmer at heart who built a hospitality empire on authenticity. Frustrated by the poor quality of sausage he could buy for his own diner in Gallipolis, Ohio, he began making his own from a family recipe. The product was so popular that he started selling it out of the back of his truck. This led to the 1953 opening of the first Bob Evans Farm Restaurant, a modest spot where customers could eat hearty country food and buy sausage to take home. Evans's genius was in branding a feeling—the straightforward, wholesome values of rural America. He expanded slowly, insisting on quality, and his name became synonymous with reliable family dining. Beyond the restaurants, he remained a passionate advocate for agriculture, founding the Bob Evans Farms Festival to connect city dwellers with farm life.
The Greatest Generation
1901–1927
Grew up during the Depression, fought World War II, and built the postwar economic boom. Defined by shared sacrifice, institutional trust, and a belief that hard work and loyalty would be rewarded.
Bob was born in 1918, placing them squarely in The Greatest Generation. The events that shaped this generation — world wars, depression, and rapid industrialization — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Bob Was Born
The biggest hits of 1918
Bob's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1918Born
World War I ends; Spanish flu pandemic kills millions
President: Woodrow Wilson
1923Started school
The Great Kanto earthquake devastates Tokyo
President: Calvin Coolidge"Yes! We Have No Bananas" — Billy Jones
1931Became a teenager
The Empire State Building opens as the world's tallest
Gas: $0.17/galPresident: Herbert Hoover"Minnie the Moocher" — Cab CallowayBest Picture: Cimarron
1934Could drive
Gas: $0.19/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Stars Fell on Alabama" — Jack TeagardenBest Picture: It Happened One Night
1936Could vote
Jesse Owens wins four golds at the Berlin Olympics
Gas: $0.19/galPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"The Way You Look Tonight" — Fred AstaireBest Picture: The Great Ziegfeld
1939Turned 21
World War II begins; The Wizard of Oz premieres
Gas: $0.19/galMin wage: $0.30/hrPresident: Franklin D. Roosevelt"Over the Rainbow" — Judy GarlandBest Picture: Gone with the Wind
1948Turned 30
Israel declares independence; Berlin Blockade begins
Gas: $0.26/galHome: $7,450Min wage: $0.40/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Twelfth Street Rag" — Pee Wee HuntBest Picture: Hamlet
1958Turned 40
NASA founded
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,050Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Volare" — Domenico ModugnoBest Picture: Gigi
1968Turned 50
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1978Turned 60
First test-tube baby born
Gas: $0.63/galHome: $35,300Min wage: $2.65/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Shadow Dancing" — Andy GibbBest Picture: The Deer Hunter
1988Turned 70
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1998Turned 80
Google founded; Clinton impeachment
Gas: $1.06/galHome: $107,300Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Too Close" — NextBest Picture: Shakespeare in Love
2007Died at 89
iPhone released; Great Recession begins
Gas: $2.80/galHome: $172,600Min wage: $5.85/hrPresident: George W. Bush"Irreplaceable" — BeyonceBest Picture: No Country for Old Men
Key Achievements
- Founded the Bob Evans restaurant chain in 1953, growing it from a single location to a national brand.
- Pioneered the farm-to-table concept by selling his own homemade sausage directly to customers at his restaurant.
- Built Bob Evans Farms into a major publicly traded food production and restaurant company.
- Established the annual Bob Evans Farm Festival in Rio Grande, Ohio, to celebrate agricultural heritage.
Did You Know?
He served in the United States Army during World War II as a military policeman.
The original Bob Evans restaurant was a 12-stool diner attached to a truck stop and gas station.
His face and signature appeared on the company's packaging for decades, a rare personal touch in corporate branding.
He was inducted into the Junior Achievement U.S. Business Hall of Fame in 1992.
““Down on the farm, we never make a new friend or forget an old one.””
