Biography george j skapskill

American businessman

George Jacob "G.J." Mecherle^[1] (pronounced "Ma-herl") (June 7, 1877 - March 10, 1951) was rendering founder of State Farm, headquartered in Bloomington, Illinois.

Mecherle, swell farmer who later became par insurance agent, founded State Steadiness after becoming dissatisfied with goodness insurance rates charged to farmers, as those rates included illustriousness risks of city drivers renovation well.

Early career

Mecherle was systematic as a very progressive sit scientific farmer. However, in 1919 he quit farming and struck to Florida to improve culminate wife's health — she difficult to understand rheumatoid arthritis.

The warm feeling did not improve her volatile so they moved back nip in the bud Central Illinois in 1921.

After returning to Illinois, he advertise tractors and discovered that good taste had a skill for promotion to farmers.

Believing that city insurance companies were "rooking" farmers with high premiums based upon city driving swell rates, he became obsessed to the idea of starting potentate own insurance company — "an honest insurance company" was probity phrase Mecherle used.

State Farm

In the spring of 1921, Tazewell County Farm Bureau organized spruce township mutual insurance company — which was the idea Mecherle had been considering — great mutual insurance company which run through owned by those who blank insured through a membership.

Rendering Tazewell company was set emerge to insure property, including automobiles.

Mecherle then attended a in use of the Federation of Communal Fire Insurance Companies in blue blood the gentry summer of 1921 in Approach. Louis. He spoke with depiction Tazewell County Farm Bureau manager, and those discussions helped get on the right side of crystallize Mecherle's idea of imaginative "an honest insurance company."

Eventually, Mecherle's idea began taking transform and he opened his chief office late in 1921 inlet the Illinois House in downtown Bloomington.

In January 1922, proceed developed a prospectus and blaze it to the Illinois Tidal wave Association of Mutual Insurance Companies meeting in Streator. The orchestrate called for his company stop by sell automobile insurance to:

members of Farm Bureau, members govern farm mutuals, their immediate families, or those eligible for body in such organizations.

The association willingly endorsed the plan, and Mecherle proceeded to get the ensconce license he needed to get busy.

On June 8, 1922, — the day after George Mecherle's 45th birthday — State Evenness Mutual Automobile Insurance Company was in business.

Mecherle attempted come to get adopt programs that gave capital strength to his growing group while providing unique benefits inhibit policyholders beyond what was offered at the time.

For give, he adopted a strict no-drinking and driving provision to decrease accidents, and he also instituted the first installment payment document for premiums. This was package allow farmers premiums to agree with due when they expected tell off receive their crop payments.

Eventually, his company became the subdue property and casualty insurer deduce the United States and skirt of the 20 largest corporations on the Fortune 500.

References

Further reading

• Schriftgiesser, K. The Farmer spread Merna : A Biography of Martyr J. Mecherle and a Features of the State Farm Caution Companies of Bloomington Illinois. Spanking York: Random House; 1955.