Kellogg descendants tour Battle Creek to learn more about family's heritage, legacy

John Harvey Kellogg recently returned to Battle Creek.

We're obviously not talking about the John Harvey Kellogg, M.D., who ran the Battle Creek Sanitarium and was the older brother of our company's founder, W.K. Kellogg. He died in 1943 and remains in his final resting place in Battle Creek.

During a visit to the Dr. John Harvey Kellogg Discovery Center at Battle Creek's Historic Adventist Village, Kellogg family descendant John Harvey Kellogg of Arizona tries on a hat originally worn by his namesake, a life-size cutout photo of whom is at right.

No, the John Harvey we're referring to is alive and well, residing in Arizona. The energetic 85-year-old is the grandson of Merritt Gardner Kellogg, who was the half brother of W.K. Kellogg. Got all that? (See sidebar to learn more about Merritt.)
It was this particular John Harvey who recently returned to Battle Creek – with a half-dozen of his family members in tow. He organized a two-day tour of our company's hometown last month as an opportunity to share the Kellogg heritage with his family.

Joining John Harvey on this trip were his daughter, Dr. Wendy Kellogg, and her husband, John Thomas, of New York; daughter, Cheryl Kellogg, of California; daughter, Lynda Kathleen Rummelhoff, of California; son, Bryan Keith Kellogg, and Bryan's son, Christopher Keith, of California.

During a visit to our company's global headquarters in Battle Creek, descendants of the family of our founder, W.K. Kellogg, met with three of our leaders. Pictured, from left, (back row) are Paul Norman, President, Kellogg International; John Thomas; Celeste Clark, Senior Vice President, Global Nutrition and Corporate Affairs, and Chief Sustainability Officer; John Harvey Kellogg; Christopher Keith Kellogg; Mark Baynes, Vice President and Global Chief Marketing Officer; (front) Dr. Wendy Kellogg; Cheryl Kellogg; Lynda Kathleen Rummelhoff; and Bryan Keith Kellogg.

"Mr. Kellogg and his family's visit provided not only Kellogg Company but also our community with an opportunity to learn more about the Kellogg family history," says Celeste Clark, Senior Vice President, Global Nutrition and Corporate Affairs and Chief Sustainability Officer. "Anytime we can learn more about W.K. Kellogg's family is a welcome opportunity, and I am glad that we were able to help accommodate their request to visit Battle Creek."

Magical history tour

Battle Creek Plant Manager Steve Combs takes John Harvey and his family on a tour of the facility.

During their two days in Battle Creek, John Harvey and his family visited nearly all the local sites that have historical significance to the Kellogg brothers.
They also learned more about the world-renowned business that bears their family name.

For instance, they kicked off their first day in Battle Creek with a tour of our manufacturing plant there, personally led by Plant Manager Steve Combs. Family members agreed that one of the highlights of the trip was seeing firsthand how Kellogg's Mini-Wheats are produced.

Next up was a special tour of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation headquarters, located in downtown Battle Creek.

John Harvey meets W.K. Kellogg Foundation President and CEO Sterling Speirn.

Sterling Speirn, the organization's President and CEO, who also serves as a Kellogg Company board member, told them all about the foundation's rich history and the remarkable philanthropic work it has done since W.K. Kellogg founded it in 1930.

The family brought photos and documents to share with Kellogg Company archivist Alinda Arnett and foundation archivist Alicia Shaver.

Other first-day stops in Battle Creek included a visit to the Historic Adventist Village. W.K.'s and John Harvey Kellogg's upbringing in the Seventh-day Adventist Church strongly influenced their later work in the areas of health and nutrition.

On display at the village's Dr. John Harvey Kellogg Discovery Center are several pieces of original equipment used by the doctor at the Battle Creek Sanitarium, the world-famous health resort he ran from 1876 until 1942. W.K. worked at the facility, then known popularly as "the San," as a bookkeeper before founding the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flakes Co., now Kellogg Company, in 1906.

A trip to the San itself – now known as the Hart-Dole-Inouye Federal Center – kicked off the family's second day in Battle Creek. They learned all about the long and storied history of the enormous complex, which was sold to the U.S. Army after the San closed its doors in 1942. It served as the Percy Jones General Hospital until 1953. In 1954, the U.S. government took possession of the site and reopened it as the Battle Creek Federal Center.

John Harvey poses by the seat dedicated to W.K. Kellogg in the W.K. Kellogg Auditorium.

Many elements of the San remain intact, and the original grandeur of the facility can still be seen throughout the building.

Next on the family's itinerary was a stop at the W.K. Kellogg Auditorium, which our company's founder gifted to the Battle Creek Community in the 1930s. The facility was refurbished as part of our centennial celebration in 2006.

The auditorium is home to the Battle Creek Symphony as well as other performance groups and community programs, and serves as the site of Kellogg's annual shareowners meeting. Operated by Battle Creek Public Schools, the local landmark boasts 2,000 seats on two levels.

And then at Battle Creek's historic Oak Hill Cemetery, they paid their respects at the gravesites of W.K. Kellogg and John Harvey Kellogg as well as the brothers' and Merritt Gardner's father, family patriarch John Preston Kellogg.

A grand finale

The family then made its way to our company's global headquarters, where they were given a tour of the building and the historical exhibit in the lobby and atrium. They also enjoyed a special lunch with a few of our Kellogg leaders, including Celeste Clark, Paul Norman and Mark Baynes.

The two-day visit concluded with a tour of the Kellogg Manor House. The residence was W.K. Kellogg's home on nearby Gull Lake until 1942, when he gave it to the military to be used as a Coast Guard induction and training center. Following W.K. Kellogg's death in 1951, the estate was donated to Michigan State University, and in 2000 it was restored to its original grandeur.

"I enjoyed meeting so many friendly and knowledgeable people who were able to share the Kellogg history with my family," says John Harvey, who had last visited Battle Creek in 1993, when he was gathering historical information on his grandfather and the Kellogg family.

His daughter Lynda further shares that "after visiting Battle Creek, I found a company town with people who are friendly, caring and appreciative for what Kellogg has done for their families. I was humbled by the time people spent with us."

The family gathers for a photo outside the W.K. Kellogg Manor House, the final stop on their two-day tour of Battle Creek.